Through the Vines
by Saintsavory
Summary: Piper develops a new appreciation for wine and falls in love with more than just a hearty red.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: I'll admit this story is more of a self-indulgent tale than any of my other stories, because it's a great deal about wine and the wine making process. I realize this premise isn't every reader's cup of tea, so I won't be offended if you find it dull and choose to walk away. The thing is, I love everything about wine, so I decided to combine that with my love of all things Alex & Piper. If you've been meaning to learn more about the wine making process, you'll definitely appreciate this story as everything I've written about that process is accurate.

Big warning: Unlike my other work, this story is incomplete, and I'm posting the chapters having only written about 80% of it. I'm hoping that I get some positive feedback that encourages me to complete it sooner rather than later.

* * *

She'd always been a fan of tequila—margaritas, Palomas, matadors or just straight shots of Patron (earlier in life, the shots were mostly rot-gut stuff like Monarch or Jose Cuervo). Beer wasn't typically her thing, but on a sizzling summer day or while at a bar, cheering on a sports team she knew next to nothing about, she'd gladly suck down a pilsner or two. Gin was too floral, and vodka was masked by whatever juice or soda was mixed with it. She'd tasted her fair share of wine over the years—the boxed stuff when she was in college, generic _red_ or _white_ at weddings, and the occasional Chianti at Italian restaurants—but she hadn't appreciated the nuances of _good_ wine until later in life.

Her friend, Polly, had arranged a wine dinner at Vinifera, a new Brooklyn Heights restaurant that had received raved reviews from the _New York Times_. They shared a six-course meal, each with its own wine pairing, and when Piper tasted the Cabernet Sauvignon with the New York strip, she was astonished at the elegance of the wine. It was like nothing she'd tasted before—a bold, viscous red with hints of vanilla, strawberry and oak. Piper hadn't wanted to move on to the next course; she would've gladly finished the bottle of Harlan Hurst cab on her own. She'd taken a picture of the label so she could find a bottle at the store but later learned that it was only distributed to restaurants.

She returned to Vinifera the next week to sip the bold red, and then four days after that, and finally, Piper found herself ponied up to the bar every other night, starting with a glass of the Harlan Hurst and allowing the bartender to introduce her to other interesting wines. She began researching wine on her own and even considered signing up for a wine sensory class at a community college.

"Do you have any other Harlan Hurst wines?" she asked after sipping a dry Alsatian Riesling.

Kent, the bartender and co-owner of Vinifera, peered high on a shelf. "Nothing here, but we might have something in the back."

Piper thanked the man as he shuffled into the back room and hoped he'd return with another bottle from the esteemed winery. She'd started her wine research by looking up Harlan Hurst on the Internet and discovering that the winemaker, Felix Whitaker, had been making Washington wines since the early 70s when the first Syrah grapes were planted in the eastern part of the state. He'd tooled around at several wineries until Harlan Hurst hired him in the mid-80s to run the ship at his label. Not only had Piper become fascinated by the winemaker, but she was also enamored by the grounds at the winery.

She'd seen hundreds of pictures of rolling hills covered with grapevines in magazines and books, but she'd never thought of Washington state as a wine-growing region—Washington, in her mind, was home to Seattle, and that was that. However, when Piper saw photos of the Harlan Hurst estate, she was blown away by the grounds and would put it against any Napa vineyard's grandeur and beauty. She'd also put their Cabernet Sauvignon against the more lauded California grape. What bothered Piper was that despite trying to find restaurants that served other varietals of Harlan Hurst, she'd come up empty handed.

"No luck back there." Kent shrugged. "Let me look something up for you." He typed a few phrases into the computer under the counter. "That's what I figured: Harlan Hurst only distributes their Cab in New York, no other wines."

"Why would they do that?"

He scratched his head. "Maybe their other wines aren't as good."

"I'd have a hard time believing that." She slid her empty glass towards him.

"You're sure they even _make_ other wines?" He poured a glass of Gamay and set the bottle on the bar for Piper to read the label—something she'd done since she started frequenting Vinifera solo.

"They make a red blend, Merlot, Syrah, Riesling and Chardonnay—at least that's what it says on their website." She swirled the wine and took a big whiff. "I can already tell—this is going to be too light-bodied for my taste."

"Probably, but it's a nice red in the summer. Give it a shot." He flung a dish towel over his shoulder. "Have you ever thought of calling the winery?"

"No." She halted her movement before the glass reached her lips. "Why haven't I thought of that?"

"Because making a call is the last thing we consider—it's all texting and social media these days," Kent chuckled.

Piper set her glass on the bar and reached for her mobile phone. She scrolled through the website until finding a phone number. "Here's the number for the tasting room. Let's see if anyone answers."

After three rings, a woman picked up. "Harlan Hurst Winery, may I help you?"

"Yes, hello…" She looked up at Kent. "I'm calling because I live in Manhattan and love your Cabernet Sauvignon, but I can only buy it by the glass in restaurants and bars here. I'm sitting at a bar called Vinifera as we speak, where I was introduced to your wine, and I was wondering if you distribute your other wines in New York?"

"Oh, thank you." Judging from her gravelly voice, it sounded like the woman was older. "My husband took care of the national wine distribution before he passed, and I haven't gotten my brain around that part of the business quite yet."

"I'm sorry." Piper crumbled a napkin with her free hand. "I didn't mean to—"

"That's alright, dear," she said. "It's a good reminder that I need to tackle it sooner rather than later."

"I can only imagine that your other wines are as good as the Cab, so I'd like to think that a distributor would be willing to work with you." She gulped, hoping to get past the sensitive topic of the husband's death. "I'd love to get my hands on the Syrah."

"That's awfully kind of you," the woman replied. "Tell you what, why don't I take down your number, and if we're able to distribute more of our wines to New York in the future, I'll give you a ring."

She smiled into the phone. "That would be nice."

"You know, if you ever find yourself in Eastern Washington, you could spend some time at the winery," she offered. "Our inn has been completely renovated, and we'd certainly like to drum up more business from folks outside of the Pacific Northwest."

"I didn't know there was an inn." Piper raised her eyebrows, eager to learn more. "I'd love to visit."

"If you're on the homepage, it's the stone building on the center of the page with the spire in the middle," she said. "I know my grandson was having trouble with the reservation link a few weeks ago, but it should be fixed by now. It would be at the bottom of the homepage on the right."

"I'll check it out." Piper released her clutch on the napkin. "Thank you for talking with me."

"It's always nice talking to someone who appreciates our wine. What's your name, dear?"

"Piper Chapman." She gave the other woman her number. "What's yours?"

"Cecelia Hurst."

"Are you…was your husband Harlan?"

"Yes." She could hear the older woman smiling on the other end.

Piper grinned. "I wish I'd had the chance to meet him."

"I have the gift of people always remembering Harlan by his wines. That's more than most widows can say."

"It is." She lowered her eyes.

"If you ever make it out here, Piper, I'll make sure you get to know Harlan through the fields and the grapes."

"I'd _really_ like that," she replied.

The call ended, and Piper relayed the full conversation to Kent until he excused himself when she started babbling about how she might get to Eastern Washington for harvest that Fall.

As she made her way home that evening, it dawned on her: she could take Polly there for her bachelorette party. Piper picked up her pace as she turned the corner and entered her apartment.

"Polly, are you home?" she called, tossing her purse aside.

Her roommate peeked around the corner, spatula in hand. "You were supposed to help me make soap tonight."

Piper glanced at her watch. "I lost track of time."

"Better late than never, I guess," Polly mumbled as she headed back into the kitchen that smelled like lemon and grapefruit.

She was on her roommate's heels. "I have the perfect plan for your bachelorette party."

Polly stirred the contents in a tall pot. "No stripers and no penis-shaped trinkets."

"I'm taking you to a winery!"

She stopped stirring and glanced at Piper. "I could get behind that."

"Good." Piper let out a long breath. "Now we just need to decide on a weekend and come up with the invitation list."

After spending almost the entire night making ten batches of soaps, Piper hit the bed hard, thoughts of visiting Harlan Hurst swirling in her head.

* * *

By mid-July the plans for Polly's bachelorette weekend had morphed into a four-night stay at the Harlan Hurst Inn during Crush in October. Although Piper kept the location secret, she let her friend in on a few of the festivities they'd partake in while they were away. Two other women had agreed to come along—Polly's 22-year-old cousin, Layla, and Camila, their mutual friend from college.

In the months leading up to their trip, Piper had read four oenological books, conducted bi-monthly tastings at Vinifera, and had stayed in touch with Cecelia Hurst about her upcoming visit.

As summer turned to Autumn, Piper learned that Felix Whitaker, the winemaker at Harlan Hurst, was planning to retire at the end of the year. Although she was sad to hear the news, it meant that she'd be coming home with cases of his prized wines after her trip. The loss would be potentially devastating to the winery, but Piper dared not bring it up to Cecelia, who was certainly aware of the situation.

* * *

"Who the fuck has _ever_ been wine tasting in Eastern Washington?" Polly huffed. "Who even knew grapes grew here?"

"Washington is the second largest wine producer in the United States," Piper began, glancing at the screen on her iPad in the back seat of the rental car. "They have 14 AVAs and almost a thousand wineries."

"What's an AVA?" Layla asked from the front seat.

Piper tugged on a piece of red licorice. "American Viticultural Areas—the geographical wine grape growing regions in the United States."

"Are we going to have to listen to your 'fun wine facts' the whole time?" Polly's mood had been sour from the moment she learned they were headed some place other than California for her bachelorette party.

"I think they're super helpful," Layla offered with a smile.

Camila turned into a rest area. "Anyone else ready for a bathroom break?"

They filed out of the car, Piper stretching as she sucked in a deep breath of pine-scented air. She'd never been to Washington, but found the terrain and Autumn climate similar to that of Maine, where she'd spent quite a bit of time as a child.

Polly stood next to her, hands on her hips. "Did Napa ever cross your mind?"

Piper gave her a look. "If you don't enjoy Red Mountain, I promise to take you somewhere else before you and Pete tie the knot."

"I'll hold you to that." She lowered her sunglasses, and then followed the other women into the restroom.

"You love wine, Polly!" she called after her friend, and then mumbled to herself, "This will be worth it."

Piper endured jibes about Podunk Washington for the next two hours as they made their way to Red Mountain, but Polly's attitude changed for the better as the road narrowed and they drove through pastures of sheep and grapes. Piper was ecstatic about visiting all the wineries just east of Yakima and could hardly contain her excitement as they meandered to their destination.

Just as she'd imagined, rolling hills were dusted with red-tinted cheat grass and grapevines as far as the eye could see. Some of the grapes had been harvested already, but the ones that still hung low on branches looked thick and ready to burst. On top of one of those hills stood Harlan Hurst, and Piper's pulse quickened with every mile. Not only did she want the inn and winery to be spectacular for Polly's sake, she also wanted her expectations to be blown away after having set such a high bar for herself. If anything was not as she'd imagined, Piper would be disappointed.

Camila turned down a dirt road as Piper navigated from the back seat and pointed towards the top of the hill. "That's it."

Layla leaned forward as she gazed at the structure. "Wow."

Polly rolled down the window and took in the fresh air. "We're not in Manhattan anymore."

Camila drove another half-mile and parked in a visitor's space. "I feel like I'm in Italy."

There was a sign hanging on a post next to the small parking lot, indicating that they had arrived at Harlan Hurst Winery & Inn. The exterior was limestone, and there were distinct levels, each with a separate roof. A tall, wide tower with a balcony on the second floor stood at the eastern side of the estate, and the main level was framed by grapevines and maple trees whose leaves had already turned shades of red and gold.

"Welcome!" A young man with shaggy brown hair in Wranglers and a plaid shirt greeted them. "You must be the Chapman party."

"We are." She shook his hand. "I'm Piper, and this is our bachelorette, Polly."

She waved. "Hi."

"I'm Colton Hurst." He smiled, showing off his pearly whites.

Camila and Layla introduced themselves, and Piper could already sense that the women would battle for the young man's attention, though Layla appeared to be much closer in age.

"Can I grab your bags?"

Polly shoved her sunglasses on top of her head. "I'm assuming you work here."

"Oh, sorry, yeah." He grabbed two duffle bags and one rolling suitcase. "My grandfather is… _was_ …Harlan Hurst."

Polly raised her eyebrows. "You're a little young to be running the place."

Piper shot her friend a look.

"I guess 21 is young." Colton began, walking towards the inn. "But I've got four younger sisters and brothers and have been helping out at the winery since I was old enough to walk." He stepped aside and allowed the women to enter the lobby before him. "I'll get my grandma to check you in, and then if you're up for it, give you a tour."

"Yes!" Camila and Layla replied a little too eagerly.

Ignoring the giggling women beside her, Piper soaked in the charming yet modern inn. There were four leather chairs surrounding a wine barrel table and a colossal fireplace that was begging to be lit. The slate floors and the stone walls made the space feel warm. It smelled like wine, which shouldn't have been a surprise to her, but it made her salivary glands work on overdrive as she thought about sipping their familiar Cab.

"Now, which one of you is Piper?"

She quickly turned around to see a smiling Cecelia Hurst. "I am."

The older woman reached for her. "I feel like we should hug."

"So nice to finally meet you." Piper released her. "These are my friends."

Cecelia greeted each of them with a handshake. "Welcome to our property."

"Excited to be here," Polly said with a more genuine smile than before.

She gave the women their keys—each having their own room—and handed them an itinerary of all the happenings at Harlan Hurst and the surrounding wineries throughout their stay. "My grandson will take you on a tour of the property if you're interested, and afterwards, I'll provide a light dinner on the back patio."

Piper glanced at her roommate, who smiled and replied, "Sounds good."

"I'll just follow and you can tell me who belongs to which bags," Colton said.

All the rooms were on the main floor except one. They all filtered into the first room, which happened to be Polly's, and ooh'd and aah'd over the soft, rustic décor. Even Polly had a wide smile on her face as she opened the curtains to see an unobstructed view of the vineyards that sloped down into a valley.

"This lotion smells delicious!" Camila opened two of the bath products. "Are all the rooms like this?"

"More or less," Colton replied.

Camila and Layla's rooms were also on the main level, so Piper ventured upstairs with Colton to her room.

"We couldn't all be on the same level?" She turned the key.

"I'm guessing my grandma would've put you all in the same wing if she could," he replied. "But all 12 rooms are booked pretty consistently through harvest."

Piper entered the room and her mouth hung open. Unlike the rooms on the main level, hers had vaulted ceilings, a stone fireplace in the corner, and a wine bottle chandelier hanging from the thick, wooden beams. If Piper had ever been in a fancy log cabin, this is what she'd imagine it would look like.

"I'm guessing this'll do."

"Yes." She glanced at Colton. "Yes, it will do just fine."

She handed him a $5 bill. "Thanks for carrying our bags."

"My pleasure. I'll see you downstairs in a bit."

"Oh, one more question." She walked over to the entryway. "Will I have the chance to meet Felix Whitaker?"

"Yeah, he's usually around in the mornings. I'll be sure to introduce you next time he's here." Colton shoved the money into his pocket. "See you in a few."

Piper shut the door and breathed in the sweet smell of charred wood and fresh linen. She walked over to see that the fireplace was a functioning one with a stack of wood next to it and a book of matches on top. She brought a small, splintered piece of wood to her nose and was treated to a more pronounced smell of cedar. Piper made a mental note to start a fire either later that night or one of the four they'd stay at the inn. She walked over to the window and opened the curtains more fully to see an even better view than Polly's of the multi-colored grapevines, skirting down the hillside. As she turned towards the bathroom, which featured an oversized tub without a wall so she'd have an unobstructed view outside, she noticed an envelope with her name on it propped against the wall.

Piper ripped it open and read the card:

 _Dear Piper,_

 _Thank you for making all the arrangements to stay at our inn. I'm eager to show you and your friends the legacy that my husband left behind. I sincerely hope you enjoy your stay._

 _Cecelia Hurst_

She held the note to her chest and smiled, certain that she _would_ enjoy her stay.

* * *

As she made her way downstairs, she heard the other women giggling and talking about how hot Colton was. She rolled her eyes, hoping that they wouldn't make asses of themselves during their stay.

"Ya'll ready for the tour?" Colton appeared with a bottle of wine tucked under one arm and four glasses in hand.

"I was beginning to wonder if this was really a winery," Polly replied, taking two of the glasses.

"We bottled this last week; it's not even on sale to the public yet." He poured the white wine in each glass. "It's a dry Riesling with less than 1% residual sugar, which you'll hear me refer to from here on out as RS." He passed the bottle around so that they could read the label, and then showed the women how to properly evaluate the wine.

Piper had studied enough about sensory evaluation to know what Colton was explaining, but she went along with it anyway for the sake of the group. On the drive up to Red Mountain, Camila and Layla had confessed that they'd never been wine tasting, and Polly had only been to a few casual tastings at wine bars in New York.

"Can we make a toast?" Layla asked.

They raised their glasses.

"To a wonderful weekend, celebrating Polly's upcoming nuptials," she said.

"And to drinking delicious wine with good friends," Camila finished.

"Cheers!" The women tapped glasses.

"Ready for the tour?" Colton clapped.

The women nodded and followed him to the main area of the lobby.

"We're standing in the original house that my great, great-grandparents built. That makes me the fifth generation of Hurst's." He shoved his hands into his pockets. "Each generation added on to the original house, which was just two bedrooms, one bath. There have been four additions or renovations to the house, but the last one was by far the biggest." Colton walked towards the French doors on the West side of the house and swung them open, allowing the women to proceed.

Piper took in the stunning view, which was similar to the one from her room. There was another house about half a mile from the inn, and to the North, a large, stone structure that was almost the size of the inn itself.

"If you step a few feet back and look at the inn, you can see a slight variation in the masonry." He pointed out the oldest to newest parts of the building. "That whole section right there was added about 10 years ago when my grandparents decided to make their original home a fully functioning inn."

"Is that the wing our rooms are in?" Polly asked.

"Sure is." He nodded. "Wine tourism in Eastern Washington wasn't really a thing until then, and we've seen a steady increase in visitors as our region becomes more popular. My grandma could give you the numbers, but I think there's been something like a 400% increase in wine tourism over the past five years."

Piper sipped the Riesling and found it to be young, but still enjoyable.

"It wasn't until two years ago that my grandma urged my grandpa to invest a serious chunk of change into updating the rooms and all that frilly stuff inside that makes it attractive to wine drinkers who're willing to make the trek out here." He walked with them to the other side of the house. "We're going to talk a lot more about our grapes and the wine making process tomorrow, but if you have any questions you want to throw out there now, feel free."

Not that she needed to be invited to ask questions, but Piper plowed ahead. "When were the vines planted?"

"The Syrah and Chardonnay were planted in the early 70s, but my grandparents didn't bottle their first vintage until 1986." Colton went on to explain when the other varietals were planted on the estate and his family's role in growing and selling grapes to other larger wineries.

As he was talking, something, rather, _someone_ , caught her eye. There was a woman with long black hair and a cowboy hat flopped on her upper back, a string around her neck holding it in place. She was as tall as the man across from her, who was holding a bundle of twine as the woman pulled and then cut it in small increments.

"Ready to see the barrel room?" Colton's question brought her attention back.

Piper whipped her head around as if she'd been caught staring. "Yeah…Sure." As they made their way to the front of the house, she looked back at the woman, who lifted her head and caught Piper's eye. Before she was able to take a better look, they'd already turned the corner, putting the woman out of view.

The barrel room was exquisite and quickly took Piper's mind off the other woman. It was in the basement of the inn and designed to look like a cave. There was one long wall line with used barrels, while the other was lined with bottles. A dining room table with seating for at least 14 people split the room in half.

"This is spectacular," Polly announced. "Will we be able to have dinner down here?"

"On your last night." He nodded. "It's kind of our send off to guests."

Layla and Camila took pictures with their phones and demanded that they take a few group photos.

At the end of the tour, the women were escorted to the covered patio that looked like something straight out of a magazine. Long, wooden beams formed a vaulted ceiling with antler chandeliers over a rectangular table. There was a fire roaring in the fireplace and six tall, white candles flickering on the mantle. Once again, the women commented on the opulence of the place, which made Piper happy. So far, it was everything she'd hoped it would be.

Although Colton wasn't supposed to join them for dinner, Camila and Layla insisted that he stay. Polly didn't mind and seemed perfectly content, sipping her third glass of wine and eating the golden beet salad with toasted walnuts. Cecelia invited the women to stay on the patio for as long as they wanted, indicating that other guests might meander out there after they returned for the night. There were at least 10 bottles of wine for the taking, and Cecelia explained that the wine was on the honor system—all they needed to do was add up the number of glasses or bottles they consumed, and their rooms would be charged accordingly.

"I think I'm going to enjoy this glass of wine from my bathtub," Piper announced, standing and stretching. It had been a very long day for all of them, and she could sense that they all wanted someone to pull the plug.

"Yeah, seems like we'll have a busy day tomorrow," Polly offered.

As they said their goodbyes to Colton, Layla hanging all over him and Camila giving her the eye, the dark haired woman Piper had seen earlier that day walked by. Her hat was in one hand and a longneck in the other. She took a swig of beer as she turned her head towards the patio.

Piper swallowed hard as she got a better look at the bespectacled woman, and before she had a chance to wave or even smile, she was gone. "Who was that?" She blinked twice, eyes still focused in the distance.

"Who?" Colton asked, unhooking Layla's arm from around his waist.

Piper swiveled her head and looked at him. "The woman who just walked by."

"Sorry, didn't see her. Might've been one of our other guests." He shrugged. "Ya'll sleep well in those comfy beds."

The women said good night to each other as they retreated to their rooms, but Piper was hung up on the woman she'd seen twice that day. She was determined to find out who she was the next morning, but until then, she would enjoy a soak in the oversized tub and try not to fall asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Piper woke up the next morning feeling refreshed and ready to enjoy a full day of wine education. She showered and dressed in something a little more casual than what she'd worn the day before (Colton had warned them to dress comfortably as they'd walk through the vineyards with the potential to soil their clothing.) She made a cup of coffee in the room and opened the curtains to enjoy the early morning view. Although her room didn't face East, the sunlight poured onto the vines and gave her the most majestic view of the green, yellow and red leaves, dripping with dew. She could see bunches of grapes hanging on branches that looked ready to break. The view looked like a painting hanging in an art gallery, only she was right there in the middle of it and about to experience wine tasting during the height of harvest. She sipped her coffee as she watched three workers walk down one of the rows, each carrying a piece of equipment. Two of them splintered off, and Piper realized that the one in the middle was the woman she'd seen the day before.

She set her coffee down and opened the window as if that would somehow give her a clearer view of the woman below. The window made an obnoxious screech, causing the woman in the field to look up. The cowboy hat that had dangled around her neck the day before was now securely on her head, and she had on jeans and a red flannel shirt. The woman squinted and gave her a tight-lipped smile, and Piper raised her hand in a wave. She wanted to yell something— _What's your name? Who are you? Why are you at the winery_? But her voice was trapped in her throat. Good thing too, because when she heard one of the workers call something to the other, Piper realized that voices carried in the wide-open space.

Piper was determined to meet the other woman to at least learn why she seemed to always be around, so she grabbed her room key and scurried downstairs. Piper had read that the inn offered a package which allowed guests to experience "a day in the life" of a winemaker, and she wondered if that was what the mysterious woman had signed up for. The other workers that she'd seen the day before were all men, except for Cecelia, so perhaps this woman was a guest who wanted to get her hands dirty and learn about wine making from the soil to the bottle.

Piper flung the front door open and twisted her neck from left to right as she looked for the woman in the field. Once she got her bearings, she realized she was looking in the wrong direction—she needed to be on the _south_ side of the property, so she turned the corner and headed the other way.

"Hey, what are you doing out here so early?" Colton appeared out of nowhere.

"Hi, I…um…" She fidgeted with her hands. "I wanted to see the vines in the early morning light."

"Beautiful, isn't it? Don't let me keep you." He gazed into the distance, and then back at Piper. "Oh, by the way, I just saw Felix, so you'll be able to meet him today." He flashed his perfect smile, and Piper could understand why Camila and Layla were so attracted to the attractive young man.

"Great, thank you." She'd been so curious to learn more about the woman in the field that she'd forgotten how excited she'd been to meet the legendary winemaker, Felix Whitaker.

By the time Piper made it to the southern part of the property, the woman had vanished and she felt deflated. Four men were tending to the vines and talking in Spanish. A part of her wanted to ask them if they knew who the woman was, but her Spanish was rusty, and she didn't want to assume they spoke English, so she let out a long sigh and made her way back to the inn.

Piper and her friends enjoyed pancakes, sausage and freshly squeezed orange juice on the patio and discussed their options for the day. All of them were in agreement about spending the day at Harlan Hurst, touring the vineyard and learning how their wine was made. That evening was the kickoff to Crush Weekend in Red Mountain, and they planned to go to the barbeque at nearby Hedges Family Estate.

As Piper waited for her friends to freshen up after breakfast, she spotted a lone rocking chair facing the now fully risen sun. She plopped into the chair and shuffled through the magazine options on the side table: _Decanter, Wine Enthusiast_ and _Food & Wine_. She'd never heard of _Decanter_ before, so she picked it up and began flipping through the publication, enjoying the feel of sunshine on her face and the cool breeze that wafted by every couple of minutes. There was a three-page spread about up-and-coming winemakers in Eastern Washington, which caught her eye. On the first two pages, she saw pictures of three men who'd joined wineries in Walla Walla and Yakima over the past year. She flicked the page and saw three more photographs—two of men and one of a woman.

Not just any woman, _the_ woman.

She brought the magazine closer and stared at the small photograph. Surrounded by ripened grapevines, the woman was sitting sideways on a tractor, one leg propped up with the cowboy hat perched on her knee. She was looking off in the distance, slight smile on her face and a Harlan Hurst wine bottle dangling between two fingers. Piper pulled the magazine back, and then closer again—she was certain that the woman in the magazine, _Alex Vause_ , was the one she'd seen the day before and that very morning.

"What are the odds?" she mumbled to herself.

She read the paragraph next to the picture: _Replacing the legendary Felix Whitaker was no easy task, but Harlan and Cecelia Hurst didn't need to look very far to find their next superstar winemaker. Alex Vause grew up on the 40-acre estate, working in the fields with her late mother before she could even ride a bicycle. "I remember walking home from school in first or second grade, not even putting my backpack in the house or changing clothes, and heading straight into the vineyard to help my mom tie vines, prune leaves or pick grapes." When Vause was just 17, she began assisting Whitaker in the lab, monitoring the grape's progress and ensuring quality. "I nicknamed her_ Shadow _when she was younger—still call her that—wherever I looked, she was there," Whitaker recalls with fondness. "Alex was doing things with soil and grapes when she was still in her teens that I didn't learn until I was in my 40s. She's the real deal; I wouldn't leave my post at Harlan Hurst if I didn't feel confident that she'd take over without the wines missing a beat." At the ripe age of 32, Vause is certainly one to watch._

"Looks like everyone's here," Colton announced with the clap of his hands, startling Piper. "Let's take a walk in the vineyard before the sun gets too high and you're left with a nasty sunburn."

"It's too cold out here to get sunburned," Layla said, shrugging into her jacket.

"Trust me, it happens. That sun is bright even in the cooler weather." Colton hopped off the patio and waited for Piper to join the group.

She quickly closed the magazine, stuffing it into her bag for further investigation. Piper was stunned to learn that the woman she'd seen over the past 12 hours wasn't a field hand or a guest at the inn—she was the winemaker who was taking over for the illustrious Felix Whitaker. As Colton talked about grapevines and soil and _terroir_ , Piper heard almost nothing. In all her research, she hadn't come across an American, female winemaker. There were female wine _owners_ , but none of them did what Alex apparently did.

During their hour-long walk among the vines, Piper looked around for Alex, but there were no workers in the area where they were strolling. She wanted desperately to ask Colton about Alex, but the timing didn't feel right. As soon as he started talking about making wine, she'd feel comfortable asking about the newest winemaker.

Piper was delighted that her friends were asking questions and seemed to be enjoying their time, first in the fields, and then in the pressing room. Colton educated them about all the equipment, starting with the sorting table and moving on to the de-stemmer. "This room is firing on all cylinders for up to 48 hours straight during harvest, which is obviously right now."

"Will we get to see it in action?" Camila asked.

He nodded. "Not only will you get to see it in action, but you'll be a part of the process at Crush on Sunday."

Layla smiled. "Sounds like fun."

Polly plucked a stray grape off the conveyer belt. "Can we eat one?"

"If sour is your thing, go for it," a female voice came from the open doors at the far end of the cavernous room.

"The grapes left on the conveyer belt aren't exactly ripe," Colton explained, eyeing the woman who'd just breezed in.

Piper's pulse quickened as Alex dropped two baskets onto a table. She walked with a purpose—long strides, confident gait. The flannel shirt that had been buttoned up earlier that morning was now tied around her waist and her toned arms peeked out from her white t-shirt.

"This is Alex Vause, our winemaker."

She removed her work gloves and gave them a perfunctory wave, eyes remaining on Piper longer than on the other women.

"I was just telling our guests about the de-stemmer," he said, folding his arms and smirking.

She pushed her glasses higher on her nose. "Don't let me interrupt."

"You're not interrupting at all." Colton hopped down from the crate he'd been standing on. "I have to run back to the inn real quick. Take over for me?"

She gave him a look, and Piper sensed that the last thing Alex wanted to do was entertain guests.

"Make it quick," she sighed, letting her cowboy hat dangle on her back and wiping sweat off her forehead with a red bandana.

Piper remembered to close her mouth, but she couldn't stop staring. According to the article in _Decanter_ , Alex was 32-years-old, but her face looked younger—it was paler than Piper would've thought, what with being out in the sun for much of the day. Her white skin only accentuated her hazel eyes and thick, pink lips.

The winemaker's eyes once again landed on Piper, and she gave her the tiniest smile. "So, the de-stemmer?" Alex adjusted her glasses again and licked her lips. "After the grapes are destemmed, they go into a tank where they're pumped into the fermentation vessel." She walked over to a big, metal vat and leaned against it. "This is where red wine making differs from white. Red wines are fermented on their skins and usually on stems and sediment, which is called _sur lie_ , while white wines are pressed, separating juice from skins before fermentation."

Piper could feel her cheeks heating up as she watched and listened to Alex talk about wine. There was something extraordinarily sexy about her, and she wished that Alex would conduct the rest of the tour and perhaps lead them through wine tasting and an evening of drinking.

"Pre-fermentation maceration is the time before fermentation that the grapes spend in contact with the skins." Alex toggled a few valves on the metal vat. "This enhances some of the varietal characteristics of the wine and extracts phenolic compounds from the skin."

"Could you put that in layman's terms?" Polly asked, arms now folded and a scowl on her face.

Alex glanced at her, blinking once. "No."

Piper snorted, and Alex caught her eye, miniscule smirk dangling on her lips.

"Sorry," Piper said, apologizing for her friend. "I'm assuming you aren't usually the one giving tours."

"How'd you guess?" She climbed up the ladder and peered inside the vat. "Fuckers didn't clean it," Alex mumbled. She stood ten feet off the ground and ran a hand through her hair. "Look, I want you to enjoy your time here and learn about how we make wine, but I'm not going to dumb shit down for you. That's Colton's job." She climbed down.

Piper couldn't help herself. "But you're so charming."

Alex took a step closer, and she smelled earthy—like grass and dirt and campfire. "I _can_ be under the right circumstances."

Polly cleared her throat, but Piper didn't budge. She and Alex stood toe to toe for several seconds until Colton re-entered the room. Piper's pulse quickened and she yearned to touch Alex's skin. She wondered what it would feel like—probably warm from being in the sun minutes earlier, but soft to the touch.

"Alex was great, wasn't she?" He chuckled.

"Hardly," Polly whispered.

Alex grinned at Piper, and then turned her attention to Colton. "You're in much better hands now. Enjoy the tour." She playfully shoved him before walking away.

"Alex and I grew up together." His blush was endearing. "She's more like a sister to me than my own flesh and blood."

"Aww!" Camila cooed.

"But we don't let her around guests very often; you can see why."

Colton finished the tour, and then took the group into the functioning barrel room where more than 100 French and Hungarian oak barrels aged wine. When they turned the corner into the room with the recently filled barrels, there was a table set for five in the middle of the room and a tray of sandwiches off to the side. Piper was flabbergasted when she spotted Felix Whitaker sitting at the table, holding a glass of wine.

"Welcome," he announced with a smile. "Mind if I join you for lunch?"

If it weren't for Felix's presence, Piper would've been singularly focused on Alex, but over the next hour, she was captivated by the winemaker's tales. He was a superb storyteller, and the way he described wine was better than any guidebook she'd ever read. It made her salivate for whatever varietal he talked about. The good news was that her glass was always full with one Harlan Hurst wine or another. Just as expected, she enjoyed every one of them and was thankful that she finally had the opportunity to taste more than just their renowned Cab.

* * *

After being in the sun for much of the morning, eating a filling lunch, and drinking wine, the women decided a nap was in order. It was just as well for Colton—he had to prepare for the massive crush event on Sunday when nearly 100 volunteers would need direction on how to help.

Piper was tired to be sure, but she was more interested in exploring the vineyard than taking a nap. Truth be told, she was more interested in running into Alex than all of the above. Alex was as beautiful as she was intriguing, and after reading the paragraph about her in _Decanter_ , Piper longed to know more. She strolled down rows of juicy Merlot grapes and wondered if they'd be harvested while they were at the winery. She popped a grape into her mouth, and was surprised that it wasn't as sour as she anticipated—it was actually sweet.

"Where are your friends?"

Piper twisted her head around to see Alex, carrying a basket and walking down the row.

She covered her yawn with the back of her arm. "Taking naps."

"Looks like you should be, too." She set the basket down and pulled the cap off a Sharpie with her teeth. "You should also wear a hat out here. It might feel cool, but your scalp will sunburn just like that." She snapped her fingers.

"I didn't bring one." Piper felt a vein in her neck pulsing at the nearness of the other woman.

Alex wrote something on a tag, and then snipped a small bunch of grapes.

"What are you doing?" She took a step closer and tried concentrating on Alex's work rather than the way her dark hair cascaded over her shoulders or her triceps flexed when she snipped the vine.

"Determining if the grapes are ready to pluck." She tied the tag around the grape stem, and then tossed them into the basket.

Piper read the tag: _Merlot_. "How will you know when they're ready?"

Alex regarded her as if she was figuring out if Piper was worth her time. She picked up the basket and headed down a different row. "Sight, touch, smell, taste—those are the basic, most primitive ways. Then I'll take them into the lab and measure sugar content, pH and acidity level." She handed Piper the Sharpie and a tag. "Write _Syrah_ on this."

She did as she was told, eager to hear more.

"We want the grapes to be rich in color, no trace of green. A ripe grape will crush easily, but not be shriveled." Alex plucked one to demonstrate. "It should be plump and juicy. See all that liquid?"

She nodded, scooting out of the way when Alex squeezed the grape and the juices squirted in all directions. The way Alex said the words _plump_ and _juicy_ made sex enter Piper's mind. She tried to banish those thoughts, but it was difficult with the way Alex smelled and sounded. Her white t-shirt was stained with grape juice, half-tucked into her tight jeans, and her eyes were a subtle green beneath her dark frames.

"It's a balance between sweet and tart." Alex continued, snipping another bunch of grapes. "Each variety develops special flavors—varietal flavor. A ripe grape develops those flavors more fully." She reached for the tag, and then tied it around the stem. "Taste this." She held a grape up to Piper's mouth. "Close your eyes and imagine what the wine might taste like."

She closed her eyes, trying to imagine that singular grape as wine, but her thoughts were far more focused on the tingle on her lips where Alex's thumb had just skimmed. "I'm not very good at this."

"What—you don't taste a big, bold, luscious Syrah?" She chuckled. "It takes years of practice."

Piper opened her eyes to see that Alex had moved to yet another row. She was quick on the winemaker's heels. "It's hard to imagine that these little, red orbs become world renowned wines."

"I only _hope_ that our wines are world renowned." She snipped another bunch, handed Piper the pen and directed her to write _Malbec_.

"I didn't know you made a Malbec." Piper cursed herself for yawning again and covered her mouth with the back of her hand.

"We use it as a blending grape, but I'm hoping this is the year we can do a single varietal." She put the grapes into the basket, picked it up and walked back towards the wine making barn. "If you're interested, I know a great place to take a nap."

Piper had to admit that she was wiped out from all the sun and wine tasting so far. "I guess I could close my eyes for a while." She followed Alex to a small patch of trees that could hardly be called a forest.

She took off her hat, revealing long, shiny black hair. "This is my relatively secret spot."

A hammock swayed in the cool breeze, half in the sunlight, half in the shade.

Piper sat on it and kicked her feet up, closing her eyes and exhaling loudly. "This is nice."

"Enjoy."

She felt something hit her stomach and opened her eyes to see Alex's cowboy hat. She turned her head and watched Alex walk into the wine making barn and put the hat on as she closed her eyes again. Although experiencing wine country was important, getting to know Alex suddenly became her top priority.


	3. Chapter 3

Her friends were well-rested by the time the barbeque rolled around at Hedges Family Estate. Although Piper had taken a short nap on the hammock, it wasn't a restful sleep. She couldn't erase thoughts of Alex from her mind and wondered if she would attend the barbeque. It seemed like something the whole community would want to participate in as the kick-off to Crush Weekend, but there was a niggling inside that suggested Alex wouldn't be into that sort of thing.

The women got a ride to Hedges with Colton, and he showed them the path to walk back to Harlan Hurst if any of them decided to leave early. Her friends seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely, and Polly even participated in the pumpkin carving contest at the estate. Piper watched Layla and Camila continue to flirt with Colton, but the young man didn't seem to want to choose between them. He seemed to relish the attention but was also a gentleman, asking both to dance after they all ate their weight in chicken, corn and potato salad.

Piper was on high alert, scanning the massive field every five minutes for Alex, but she was nowhere to be found. By 9 o'clock, everyone at the event seemed to be good and liquored up, including her friends. Polly had struck up a conversation with the owners of Hedges, and the other two women remained occupied with Colton and his friend in the 90s cover band. Piper had only drunk two glasses of wine with dinner, so she was far from intoxicated. She decided just before 10 p.m. to walk the half-mile back to the inn, explaining to her friends that she hadn't had the benefit of a mid-day nap like they did.

As she walked down a narrow dirt path towards Harlan Hurst, Piper looked up at the starry sky and took several deep, steady breaths. The air smelled sweet and damp. If she concentrated, she could smell the wine that would eventually be made from all the grapes around her. The nip in the air forced her to put on her jacket, but it was still chilly against her bare legs. She'd remember the next night to wear pants instead of a dress.

Although Alex hadn't shown up at the barbeque that evening, Piper had trouble erasing her from her thoughts. It wasn't for lack of trying—she'd carved a pumpkin with Polly, played a couple rounds of Cornhole with Colton and the others, and even danced to a few 90s songs. Still, every tall, dark haired woman she saw, her heart skipped a beat until seconds later, she realized it wasn't Alex. She found Alex to be strikingly beautiful, but she was also a superb winemaker, which attracted Piper to her even more. Alex was probably an encyclopedia of wine, and Piper longed to soak up insider knowledge about the wine making process and to sip wine with the person who actually made it.

Piper made her way back to Harlan Hurst without issue, and as she approached the inn, she noticed a light shining through the half-opened door at the wine making facility. Her heartrate increased at the mere possibility of seeing Alex once more before heading to bed. She made her way towards the building and heard music and laughter coming from inside. She passed once, glancing inside to see two men sitting on a picnic bench. She passed a second time, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, looking to see if Alex was there.

"Are you going to keep pacing out there or come inside?" a distinguished female voice asked.

She gulped, realizing that her stealth mode needed some work. "I heard music and voices, so…"

Alex, who was sitting on top of the picnic table, legs dangling off the edge, raised a beer can to her lips. "So, what? You wanted an invitation?"

Piper shrugged as she stood in the doorway just outside the room, unsure how to proceed.

Alex hopped off the table and reached into a mini-fridge, pulling out a Rainier tallboy. "Get in here."

She smiled lightly, relieved that she wasn't intruding on some super-secret meeting.

Alex popped open the beer and handed it to her. "This is Diego, and that's Santiago."

The dark-skinned men greeted her with head nods.

"Thanks." She took the proffered beer, elated that Alex was presumably inviting her to stay.

Alex flung her hair over her shoulders with the flick of her neck. "I never caught your name."

"Piper." She extended her hand. "Piper Chapman."

She shook it, and Piper expected it to be rough and calloused from all the field work, but it was warm and soft.

The men stood, Diego putting on his hat and Santiago draining the last of his beer. They communicated to Alex in Spanish—something about seeing her bright and early the next morning and behaving herself that night.

She turned to face them, finally releasing Piper's hand. "Que pases buenas noches."

Piper was turned on by Alex's bilingual ability and tried to hide her blush with the tall can of beer. The men waved at her, and then walked outside, closing the large door a bit more but not fully.

"I'm assuming they work with you?"

Alex tossed her empty can into a recycle bin, and then stepped closer. "You smell like grilled meat and barbeque sauce."

"You have a good nose." She felt her skin prickle at Alex's proximity and wanted to pull her even closer. Just in case her hands reached out on their own volition, she tucked them into her pockets and balled them into fists.

"It's essential for this business." She walked into the other room, and Piper followed. "That's why Colton and his dad can't be winemakers—they can't smell for shit."

"Did you know 75 percent of what we perceive to be taste is actually smell?" Piper asked.

Alex let out a soft chuckle. "Do tell."

She rubbed the back of her neck with one hand. "Sorry, I'm sure you know that."

" _I_ do, but most people don't." Alex climbed onto a platform and reached her hand down. "Have you ever punched down wine?"

" _Punched_ wine? No." Piper took her hand and climbed the six steps onto the narrow platform.

"When grapes are in the fermentation vessel, all the solids—skins, seeds, stems, pulp—rise to the surface, and we need to integrate it back into the wine."

"That gross foamy stuff?" Piper made a face, unaware that wine went through an 'ugly' stage.

"It's called the cap." She grabbed a long paddle and began to push the bubbly liquid down. "Think of the cap like a tea bag—if it's just floating on top, you're not going to get the color or flavor that you would if you dunk the bag in the water to steep."

"Makes sense."

"Also, leaving the cap floating on top runs the risk of bacterial growth, which would ruin the wine." Alex handed her the paddle. "Try it."

Piper punched down the wine, getting a feel for the thickness of the cap. "How often do you have to do this?"

"Twice a day, but some winemakers do it more, some less." She put her hands on her hips and smiled, and Piper was drawn to her broad shoulders. "You're a natural."

Piper looked up at her, mirroring her smile. "No wonder you're so strong."

Alex cocked an eyebrow. "How do you know I'm strong?"

She quickly focused her attention back on the red mass in the vat. "I'm just assuming with all the punching and pruning and stuff."

She heard Alex chuckle as she reached for the paddle again, brushing her arm. "You have to get way over here, too." They held the paddle together and reached to the far end of the vessel.

Her breath hitched at their closeness, and she took in the scent of the woman next to her. Piper wasn't sure if it was Alex or the mixture that smelled like young, sweet wine.

She pulled the paddle out and tapped it against the side. "That should do it for tonight."

Piper felt a pang in her chest at the thought of the night ending. While she was excited to learn more about how to make wine, she wanted to know more about Alex. "No more beer?" she tried.

"Not tonight." Alex climbed down the stairs and reached up to help her. "The next few days are going to be brutal, and I need to sleep when I can."

Once again, she had a tingling sensation at Alex's touch. "What's going on tomorrow?"

"We're harvesting the Malbec. We'll probably wait until Sunday to do the Syrah." She handed Piper her abandoned Rainier, but not before taking a long swig herself.

"Can I help?" She wrapped her lips around the edge of the can, tasting just a hint of Alex.

"I'm sure you've got better things to do, kid." Alex wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "Isn't there something going on at Hamilton Cellars tomorrow?"

Piper scratched her head, mildly frustrated that she was getting the brush off. "I think there's a hayride or something equally lame."

"That _is_ pretty lame." She let out a short laugh and nudged her glasses. "I'll be working from sun up to sun down. If you have any free time, find me. I'll put you to work."

Piper shrugged. "Or we could just have lunch or something," she blurted out, cheeks suddenly feeling flushed.

Alex's expression changed. If Piper was a betting woman, she'd put money on Alex suddenly thinking of something _entirely different_ than making wine.

"I guess I have to eat at some point," she replied with a tiny grin. "Meet me back here around noon."

"Ok." She smiled. "Good night."

"Night, Piper."

* * *

The next morning, Piper woke up with a smile on her face. She and Alex had hit it off, or at least so it seemed, and she'd have lunch with the winemaker that day. She'd have to find a way to excuse herself from dining with her friends, but if Piper knew Polly as well as she thought she did, her roommate would be recovering from a 24-hour hangover after drinking too much at the event the night before.

On the mid-morning hayride, both Polly and Layla had to get off to throw up. Camila laughed at them, bragging that she didn't suffer from hangovers. Piper held her roommate's hair back while she hurled, completely grossed out by the sound and the smell of puke, but reminding herself it would be easier to ditch her friends at lunch to hang out with Alex if they were too sick to go anywhere else but back to the inn.

"The hayride was a bad idea," Polly complained as Piper tucked her into her hotel bed.

"The motion probably didn't do you any favors." She filled a glass with water and put it on the side table. "Can I get you anything? A cup of soup? Some Gatorade?"

Polly rolled over. "No, just let me sleep. I might be able to rally for dinner."

"Hope you feel better." She kissed her friend on the head, and then left the room.

Piper rushed upstairs to change out of the shirt that she'd worn on the hayride that had ripped when she jumped off the truck. She threw on a Navy blue, long sleeved shirt but remained in her jeans and boots, brushed her hair, and grabbed Alex's cowboy hat that she'd forgotten to return earlier that morning. She flew downstairs to meet Alex only four minutes late.

She walked briskly to the wine making barn, noticing that both massive doors were open. It was loud and crowded in the room as every bit of equipment seemed to be running. Piper looked around for Alex but didn't recognize any of the 20 or so people in the room, all of whom seemed to move with a purpose.

"Piper, over here."

She turned to see Alex, holding a picnic basket, two glasses and a bottle of wine.

"Hi." She smiled.

"Hope you're hungry." Alex returned the smile.

To lighten Alex's load, she grabbed the bottle of wine and glasses. They walked side-by-side past the hammock and down one of the rows of grapevines with a sign nailed to a fence post that read _Cabernet Sauvignon_.

Piper glanced up. "I hope I wasn't supposed to bring anything."

"I think I got it covered." She turned down another row and set the basket down under the shade of a lone apple tree. "Unless you were hoping for filet mignon."

"Next time," she offered and caught a slight grin on Alex's lips. "Oh, I almost forgot. Here's your hat. Thanks for letting me borrow it yesterday."

"Thanks." She took the hat, hanging it by the cord on one of the branches. "It was my mom's."

"Your mom worked for Harlan Hurst?" Piper noticed a blanket peeking out of the basket and grabbed it.

Wordlessly, Alex took the other end, and they spread it out on the ground.

"Yeah, pretty much her whole adult life. See that house over there?" She pointed to a house in the distance. "That's where I grew up. I still live there."

She sat on the blanket, mostly in the shade. "You've never left Red Mountain?"

"Only briefly." Alex set out two kinds of cheeses, sliced salami and a jar of almonds. "I moved to Seattle the day I turned 21—thought the city would be more exciting than life on a farm."

Piper opened a sleeve of wheat crackers. "Was it?"

"It _was_ for about three months, when I spent vast amounts money on booze and women."

She lowered her eyes, trying to keep a grin at bay as Alex confirmed that she was, in fact, into women. "City life is exciting, but it's expensive," Piper added. "I'm sure Seattle isn't as expensive as New York, but still, the cost of living is way more than out here."

"Tell me about it." She expertly pulled the cork out of the bottle and poured two glasses of white wine. "By the fourth month, I was broke and bored. I worked as a barista and hated every minute of it."

"I couldn't imagine you serving the public," Piper laughed.

"Again, with the charm jokes," she noted with a smile. "But seriously, I have no business in customer service. I got fired after the three weeks."

"When did you move back here?" She popped a couple of almonds into her mouth.

"I'd signed a six-month lease with some guy I found on Craigslist who needed a roommate, and I wanted to honor that." She sliced into the smoked Gouda. "But I left after about five and a half months. Been here ever since." She raised her glass. "Before you continue with your litany of questions, let me tell you what we're drinking." She swirled the liquid around in her glass and smelled it. "This is the first wine I made on my own."

"Wow, then it's a very special bottle." Piper did the same with her glass, detecting hints of grass and vanilla. "How long ago was that?"

"Five years almost to the day." She took a sip, swishing it around in her mouth before swallowing. "Chardonnay is the easiest grape to work with—you can totally fuck up the balance of sugar and acid, but aging it in new oak will take care of most of that."

"It's delicious."

"I wouldn't go that far." She took another sip. "It's drinkable, but I didn't know what the hell I was doing back then."

"I'm sure it still holds meaning for you, even if it's not your favorite." She ate a piece of cheese, and then made a cracker with salami and cheese for Alex.

"It does, but my wine is much more sophisticated now." She held up her glass, looking at the golden liquid in the light. "I'd never sell this stuff today."

"When did Felix let you take the helm?" She ate another cracker.

"About three years ago—he just got tired of all the steps you need to go through to make really good wine. There was a long stretch when we didn't win any awards, and Harlan could tell that Felix had lost the umph he had all those years before." She ate a piece of salami. "Over the past two years, we've won six awards."

"Congratulations." Piper smiled. "I'm sure it's not easy making wines of this caliber."

"It's not, but I love it." Alex let out a long breath, and they both remained silent for a moment.

Piper was in a state of bliss—drinking wine, eating cheese & crackers and enjoying Alex's company. She hadn't a worry on her mind and wanted to stay there for hours on end.

"I couldn't tell you the last time I felt this relaxed." Alex stretched out on the blanket, black shirt creeping up her tummy, providing Piper with a brief view of pale skin. She propped herself up on an elbow, other hand inches away from Piper's crossed legs.

"I'm glad." Her fingers itched to reach out and touch the back of Alex's hand, but she busied them with building another salami and cheese cracker.

"I _shouldn't_ be this relaxed with everything going on today," she admitted.

Piper shrugged. "Maybe you just needed a break to clear your head."

"Maybe…" She stared up at Piper, blinking slowly before speaking again. "Enough about me." She poked Piper's thigh. "Tell me about you and how you got into wine."

First, she told Alex about life in New York and the soap business that she and Polly were trying to get off the ground. Then, she told her about the first time she did an official wine pairing, and that the glass of wine that made her knees buckle was a Harlan Hurst Cabernet Sauvignon.

"Do you remember the vintage?" Alex, still balancing on her elbow, topped off their glasses with her free hand.

"I remember _everything_ about that wine." She took a sip. "It was a 2015 Cab."

"Really? You're not just making that up?" Alex's smile was contagious.

"No, why would I make it up?"

"That was _my_ wine."

Her eyebrows shot up. "Yours as in _you made it_?"

She nodded, still smiling widely. "Yeah."

"Well, Alex Vause," She put a hand on top of Alex's head, tilting it up a bit. "You changed my life."

They stared at each other for a moment, smiles fading into something more akin to appreciation and sincerity. And then, Piper felt something tug in her stomach that went straight down to her center. She swallowed hard as desire flickered in her mind. She watched Alex's eyes grow darker and wondered if her own eyes were as telling.

"Are you a mind reader?" Alex asked.

"No." Piper removed her hand, bringing both into her own lap, wondering what Alex was thinking to warrant such a question.

She sat up, placing a hand on Piper's knee. "I'm pretty sure we're thinking the same thing right now."

With the way Alex was looking at her lips, Piper was certain that she was going to lean over and kiss her, and then her mobile phone chirped.

" _Fuck_ ," Alex mumbled under her breath as she reached into her pocket to answer the call. "Yeah?" She ran a hand through her hair. "Ok, I'm coming," she sighed. "The de-stemmer is jammed. I have to head back."

And just like that, the moment was gone.

Piper tucked her hair behind her ear. "Sounds like a pretty big problem."

"If they wouldn't shove a fucking half-ton of grapes into it all at once, this wouldn't happen." She held her hand out and helped Piper to her feet.

"Maybe we can meet up later," Piper offered, enjoying the feel of Alex's hand still lightly holding hers.

Alex glanced at their joined hands, and then let go. "That's highly unlikely."

Her heart sunk. Just when she thought they'd shared a moment, Alex was in no rush to spend time with her again. "I'll clean this up and bring it to the barn later."

Alex grabbed her hat off the branch and placed it on her head. "Would you mind?"

Piper gave her a tight-lipped smile. "Not at all."

When she was about 20 feet away, Alex spun back around. "It's not that I don't want to…" she paused. "See you later, I mean."

She'd already bent down to fill the picnic basket with the lunch items. "Ok."

"I _do_ , actually."

Piper felt her lips tug upwards and her shoulders loosen with relief at hearing those words. "Ok."

"Ok." Alex gave her a small smile, and then walked briskly back to the barn.

Piper couldn't help but smile, knowing that Alex had enjoyed their time together enough to want to continue their conversation. Although she'd never be the first to admit when someone was into her, she was ecstatic that minimally, Alex wanted to spend more time with her. She placed everything that she could into the picnic basket and drained the last bit of wine into her glass, taking one final swig. She sat under the apple tree for a minute more, enjoying the wine and the view, when it dawned on her: Alex was the woman who'd made her fall in love with wine. Piper hadn't believed in coincidence or fate before that moment, but she was coming around to realize that perhaps there was something greater than her that allowed the two of them to meet.

She walked back to the barn, blanket flung over one shoulder, and saw that the hubbub she'd witnessed earlier was even more elevated. She set the basket and blanket in a corner and watched the workers operate. There seemed to be one part of the operation that was causing a slowdown that affected each of the other parts.

"Can I help?"

Alex, who was hunched over, digging through a toolbox, looked up at her somewhat surprised. "How dirty are you prepared to get?"

Piper blinked once, never pulling her eyes away from the hazel ones in front of her. " _Very_."

Alex's smirk reeked of desire. "Follow me."

Except it wasn't.

"The de-stemmer is working again, but the person hauling the grapes is having trouble catching up." She turned to the woman pushing the cart. "No offense, Alma."

"Ninguna toma," Alma replied.

Alex handed her a pair of work gloves. "I need you to run these bins from the field to the barn, and when you get here, dump the grapes into this container." She gripped the handles of a large, plastic wheel barrow and demonstrated. "Like this."

"Got it." Piper pushed up her sleeves.

"Good." She ran her hand down Piper's back, sending chills throughout her body. Piper hoped that action would be repeated in the near future with far less clothing between them.

For the next four hours, Piper hauled wheel barrows full of grapes to the barn, circling Alma three times. She'd be damned if she didn't impress Alex enough to earn a "good job" or a "thank you." And truth be told, Piper felt needed— _valuable_ —something she hadn't felt in a long time even with Polly in the soap business.

When she was finished with the last bin, she pulled her phone out of her pocket and read a series of texts from her friends that she'd missed about dinner plans. "Shit," she mumbled. Thankfully, they were all still hungover and had decided to grab burgers from a fast food joint in Benton City. Piper texted back, 30 minutes after the fact, that she'd been helping with wine production and that they should feel free to join the action. Each of them texted some version of _no way in hell_ , which set Piper's mind at ease.

Piper finally had the chance to wash off in the bathroom, and when she looked at herself in the mirror, she almost didn't recognize the image in front of her. Her hair looked like she'd been shocked by 200-volts of electricity, her shirt was covered with grim and grape juice, and her jeans were stained almost as badly. As she washed her hands with refreshingly cold water, she had trouble flexing her fingers—no doubt they'd be sore the next day. She didn't even attempt to put herself back together; there was no use, so she proceeded back into the main area of the wine making barn to watch what happened next.

The equipment shut down one by one after the grapes passed through, and two men tended to the fermentation vessel from above. Alex had conversations with some of the workers, mostly in Spanish, and toyed with the valves on the larger vats. She and Santiago wheeled two of the vessels against the wall, while several of the workers hosed down the concrete and swept the debris into compost bins.

Twenty minutes later, Alex rang a triangle and got everyone's attention. By that point, about 15 workers remained in the room. "Thank you all for another good day," she began. "Dinner tonight is courtesy of Diego's wife." They all clapped and whistled. "Enjoy the food, and I'll see you back here bright and early tomorrow."

The massive doors opened on the West side of the barn, revealing a smorgasbord of dinner options and two pumpkin pies.

With both thumbs in her back pockets, Alex tapped her shoulder against Piper's. "You were a big help today, kid."

"I'm glad." She smiled, and then glanced down at her filthy shirt. "I didn't realize how dirty I'd get."

Alex chuckled. "You wear it well."

She tugged on the hem of Alex's shirt. "Why aren't you as dirty as I am?"

"I didn't haul grapes today." Alex turned more fully towards her. "But I don't mind getting dirty."

They stared at each other, Piper feeling her chest tighten as the energy between them became more pronounced.

"You should get something to eat." Just like at lunch earlier that day, the moment was gone in an instant. Alex tossed her hat onto a table. "Diego's wife is an excellent cook. Try the tamales."

"I will, thanks." She wasn't quite ready to leave Alex's side just yet, so she tried starting a new conversation. "You're in charge of all these people?"

She cracked her neck from side to side. "Yeah, I guess."

"That's a lot of responsibility." She grabbed a bottle of water from an ice bucket on the table, opened it and gulped down the cold liquid.

"True, but I don't think of myself as the boss—that's not how Felix operated. He just guided everyone in the right direction. That's what I do—what I _hope_ I do." She touched Piper's arm. "How interested are you in the winemaking process?"

She used her sleeve to wipe the water that dripped down her chin. "Very."

Alex stacked three plastic bins. "Do you understand what happened today?"

"I think so." Piper mentioned all the things she'd seen in the production room.

"Not bad." She washed her hands in the industrial sink. "Ready for a beer?"

"Sure." What she couldn't understand was how a winemaker could drink more beer than wine—at least that's what she'd noticed in the short time she'd been at the winery. "Why don't you drink wine after a day like today?"

"When you're around it this much, the last thing you want at the end of a grueling day is wine," she chuckled, grabbing two cans out of the refrigerator. "There's something satisfying about drinking a beer after being on my feet all day. Wine is a different kind of satisfaction."

She took the beer, tapping it against Alex's. "I don't know if I've ever had a Rainier."

"Mmm," Alex swallowed a large gulp. "It's cheap, but I love it. Rainier started in Seattle, then some big beer company bought the license and moved the production to California. I think they're making it back in Seattle again, but it's not independently owned."

"It's pretty good—better than Bud or Coors Light." She took a sip. "Aren't you going to eat?"

"Eventually. I just need to make sure everything is functioning properly before I do." Alex sat on a bench against the wall, leaning her back against it and extending her legs. "I usually take a plate home, eat and then pass out."

Piper sat next to her, wondering how far she should probe. Should she leave well enough alone, thank Alex for the opportunity and leave, or should she try her best to flirt enough to get Alex to have dinner with her even if it was with 15 Mexicans?

"Do you have plans with your friends tonight?" Alex lifted her glasses to the top of her head.

"You mean for dinner?" Piper let out a snort. "Not only have they eaten, but I'm sure they've been sleeping for the past hour."

"Hungover?"

"You could say that."

Alex grinned. "Nothing quite like a wine hangover."

"Tell me about it." Piper recalled her previous wine hangovers, all of which resulted in vomiting.

"Well, I should tidy up some things around here." She drained the contents of her beer, and then stood, putting her glasses back in place. "Seriously, get some food. You can eat here or take it to go." She tapped her foot against the side of Piper's boot.

"Thanks."

Alex threw her can into the recycle bin. "We have a million volunteers tomorrow, so tell your friends they're welcome to join us."

"I'm sure they'd like that." She stood, finishing her Rainier and feeling soreness throughout her body. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

As Piper made her way through the barn doors, Alex called for her. "Hey…If you want to see the sunrise tomorrow, I'll be down here by 6:30."

"I'd like that." Piper smiled and walked out the door, wondering if she'd sleep at all that night as she anticipated spending the next morning with Alex.


	4. Chapter 4

To say that she was sore the next morning was an understatement. Piper flexed her fingers, but she couldn't bend them without severe pain from having pushed the wheel barrow for four hours straight the day before. She sat up in bed and had difficulty flinging her legs over the edge. She ran her hands over her face and wondered how she could possibly be _that_ sore—after all, she jogged and practiced yoga regularly and was generally physically fit. She'd pressed snooze on her alarm twice, but now she needed to get out of bed, pain be damned, if she wanted to see the sunrise with Alex. And she _really_ did.

Piper quickly brushed her hair and her teeth and pulled on the last pair of clean jeans she'd packed. Every movement of her arms hurt, and when she bent down to tie her shoes, her thighs burned. She buttoned her blue & white striped Oxford shirt, and then quietly walked downstairs.

It was still dark outside, but there was a hint of sunlight in the East. It was colder that morning than it had been the night before, and she was glad that she'd brought her jacket and a scarf. Piper zipped the jacket as she made her way towards the wine barn. As she got closer, she heard music coming from inside and saw that the East-facing barn doors were open, dim light peeking out.

"Knock, knock," Piper said, figuring if she literally knocked there was no way anyone would hear it over the music. She walked inside, looking around for Alex, but she wasn't in the main equipment room. "Alex?"

Just then, the winemaker peeked her head around the corner. "Over here."

Piper made her way into the other room, taking in a big whiff of charred barrels and wine. "Good morning."

"Morning." Alex smiled as she pulled the pot from the coffeemaker. "Are you a coffee drinker?"

She folded her arms against the chill inside. "God, yes. I don't know how people wake up without it."

"It's also warm on a cold morning," Alex added, pouring each of them a cup.

Piper glanced around the room—there were six fermentation vessels lining one wall and two smaller metal containers that appeared to be full of wine. "You don't have to keep the temperature regulated?"

"Not in here. The tanks are temperature controlled on the inside." She handed Piper a mug. "Help yourself to sugar and cream—sorry, it's the powdered kind." She poured some into her own mug, and then stirred it with a plastic stirrer, dipping it into her mouth when she was done. "You look cold."

"I am, but the coffee should warm me right up." She added one sweetener and a dash of creamer to her cup. "It feels colder today than yesterday."

"I'll grab a blanket." Alex walked into a closet a few feet away. "You can get situated over there while I do a little work. The sun won't rise for another 20 minutes."

She sipped the hot liquid. "I can help if you want."

"I got it." Alex grabbed her hand, tugging her towards the open doors. "Wait here."

Piper watched her move around the room with long, confident steps. She pictured Alex as a little girl, running around the wine making facility, helping where she could, but possibly getting in the way of the more sophisticated equipment. She would've wanted to know Alex as a girl, and the unrealistic possibility brought a sad smile to her face.

Alex pushed an old, yellow sofa to the opening far enough inside to not be seen by anyone at the inn, but close enough to the edge to get a perfect view of the vineyard and eventual sunrise. "Here."

"Where did that thing come from?" Piper chuckled.

"My office," she replied. "I've slept on this thing more times than I'll admit, but I've never dragged it out to watch the sunrise."

"I'm honored you pulled it out for me."

"I'll be back in ten minutes." Alex smiled, handing her a thick, plaid blanket. "Help yourself to more coffee if you want."

Part of her wished that Alex would've asked for her assistance with the wine making stuff, but another part was content to sip her coffee while appreciating the stunning view. She tried to recall the last time she'd seen a sunrise. It wasn't in her adult life—maybe in college after pulling an all-nighter, but that wasn't the same as this. As far back as she could remember, there was never a time when she _intentionally_ watched the sunrise.

Ten minutes later, Alex returned, plopping down next to her. "Ok, I'm ready." She let out a long breath as if now she could finally enjoy the view.

"Who's playing?" Piper handed her part of the blanket, and Alex scooted closer so that both were fully covered.

"The music?"

"Yeah." She felt Alex's leg against hers and didn't dare move an inch.

"Alexi Murdoch." She took a big sip of coffee.

"I haven't heard this one before." Piper closed her eyes and listened to the words of _At Your Door_. "Did you know he was discovered by a DJ in L.A., and everyone in the music industry wanted to sign him? He ignored all the chatter about being the next great singer-songwriter and turned down major record labels so that he could release his music independently."

"I did not know that."

She opened her eyes to find Alex grinning down at her.

"Now you do." She smiled, feeling perfectly content and relaxed, sipping coffee and waiting for the sun to make an appearance.

"He reminds me of Nick Drake." Alex shifted her leg a bit, melding their thighs together. "I loved him when I was a teenager."

Piper lifted her head off the back of the sofa. "I didn't know who Nick Drake was until like five years ago."

"I was an odd child," Alex said with a slight snicker. "I thought I was Mexican until second grade."

"Mexican?"

"That's who I was surrounded by in the vineyard in my younger years," she admitted. "I didn't know any of the white people who did the more sophisticated stuff at the winery back then—only my mom."

Piper toyed with the edge of the blanket. "I bet you were a cute kid."

"Like I said, I was odd...maybe a little precocious." She grinned. "My friends were migrant field workers, and instead of braiding a Barbie dolls' hair, I braided grapevines. There are still a few on the edge of the property that are still producing fruit."

She blinked up at her. "I don't think that's odd; I think it's fascinating."

Alex stared at her as if she was trying to read her thoughts. Her intense gaze almost made Piper uncomfortable. Finally, she looked away, and they were silent for a couple of minutes while the music played and the sun began to peek above the eastern hills.

Alex took the last sip of coffee, and then set her mug on the ground. "When was the last time you watched the sunrise?"

"I was just thinking about that—I don't think I've _ever_ watched one intentionally." She continued to enjoy her coffee. "You?"

"Almost every day," she breathed. "But it's been a long time since I sat still to watch it."

The song changed to _Towards the Sun,_ which Piper recognized. "How appropriate."

"I didn't plan that; I swear." She let out a soft laugh. "I just felt like listening to mellow music this morning, and this was the first album that popped up."

"There it is!" Piper announced, pointing at the sun, showing about a quarter of herself to the world. "It rises so fast."

"It does," she agreed. "Reminds me that sometimes I need to slow down, especially at this time of year."

"Wow, look at that," Piper whispered with awe, leaning a little closer as she watched the sun come up.

"You have this sense of _wonder_ about you," Alex commented, rubbing a piece of blonde hair between her thumb and forefinger.

She looked up. "How could anyone not marvel at this?"

"It's not just the sunrise," she explained, releasing Piper's hair and placing her hands in her lap. "It's your interest in wine making, too. And I know we just met yesterday, but you seem to _feel_ things differently than most people."

Piper shrugged. "I never really thought about it."

They kept their eyes trained on each other for a few more seconds, until Alex turned to watch the sunrise.

"Look at that." Piper couldn't seem to take all of it in at once—the sun, the vines, the golden colors stretching over the valley like a patchwork quilt, and the woman next to her. She feared if she blinked, it would be gone, so she kept her eyes open until it stung too much to do so.

Alex reached for her hand under the blanket and linked their fingers together. Piper's heart lurched, but she kept her eyes trained on the sunrise. It had been years since she'd held hands with anyone, and it was exhilarating.

"I wish I had a camera—a good one, not the one on my phone," Alex said.

"Pictures of nature never turn out the way you want them to anyway." Piper glanced at her, but Alex's attention was focused on the eastern sky. "It's hard to capture a moment, you know?"

"Not of the sunrise—of us." She squeezed Piper's hand and gave her the most tranquil smile.

Piper was rendered speechless. If she'd have pictured what the trip to Red Mountain was going to look like, this was certainly not it. She knew the vineyards would be beautiful and the wine would be spectacular, but not in her wildest dreams did she imagine she'd find someone to share it with—someone she was quickly appreciating on every level.

"But in about ten minutes, everything will change—workers will stumble in, the grapes will be ready to harvest, volunteers will show up, and I'll be pulled in 20 different directions."

She nuzzled into Alex's side. "Then let's enjoy these last nine minutes."

Alex threw one arm over Piper's shoulders and pulled out her phone, snapping a quick photo of the two of them. "This will have to do for now."

The birds began chirping louder and the sound of trucks rolling on gravel meant the world was awake.

"Alex?" a man called from the other room.

"I guess that's my cue," she whispered, squeezing Piper against her before standing, shins touching Piper's knees. "This was nice."

"It was." She sat up straight, wondering if she should walk out of the open doors and back to the inn as if she was never there.

"Have a good day, Piper. I'll see you around." Alex turned her attention to the man in the other room. "Hola, Miguel."

She gazed at the sun once more, marveling at its beauty, before folding the blanket and stepping outside. As she journeyed back to the inn, Piper's heart was full. She'd never met anyone like Alex, and she didn't want to wait another minute before getting to know her better. Her fingers still burned at Alex's touch, and instinctively, she brought both hands to her chest and let out a contented sigh. How could all of this be happening with her friends so nearby? Polly hadn't a clue that she'd spent time with Alex, and she didn't know if she should tell her about their budding relationship or keep it to herself.

As she passed through the lobby, she was shocked to see her friend walking down the hallway towards her.

"What are you doing up so early?" Polly asked.

"I could ask you the same thing." She hoped her cheeks looked more like a slight sunburn than the blush that was forming on them.

Polly stretched. "I think I slept for 12 hours straight. I feel like a new woman."

"Want to get breakfast?"

"Sure." Polly locked arms with her as they made their way to the patio. "Why are you awake at this hour?"

"It's not like it's super early," she tried. "The sun is up."

"There's something else…" Polly eyed her. "I can't quite put my finger on it…What are you up to, Piper Chapman?"

They sat at a table and watched one of the workers set up the breakfast buffet.

She scratched her head and averted her eyes. "I just watched the sunrise."

"By yourself?" Polly raised her eyebrows.

"No, with the winemaker."

Polly leaned forward. "The old man with a limp?"

"No, asshole!" Piper realized that she'd yelled, so she looked around to make sure they were alone. "The female one, Alex."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, Piper…come _on_!"

"We had lunch yesterday and hung out last night. She's awesome, Polly." She could hear herself swooning, and she knew her roommate was going to give her shit.

"We didn't come all this way for you to fall for some woman who happens to work at a winery," Polly stated.

"I had no idea she was replacing Felix! I read about it the other day in a magazine that I found right over there, and then I saw her and…" she swallowed hard. "She's really…"

"Hot?" Polly lifted her brows again.

"Fuck, yeah," she breathed out.

Her roommate swatted at her and smiled. "You're such a little slut!"

She held Polly's hand. "I promise, I won't let our relationship get in the way of the fun we're having."

"Relationship?!"

"I don't know what else to call it," Piper admitted. "Friendship, interest in each other…"

"Fuck buddies?" she tried.

"Shh!" She let go of Polly's hand. "We haven't had sex; we haven't even kissed."

Polly leaned back. "Yet."

She glanced towards the wine barn. "I don't know if it's headed that way."

"But you'd like it to?"

Piper returned her attention to her friend. "Yeah, I would."

"You ladies beat us down," Camila announced, Layla not far behind. "Hooray for no more hangover!"

All four of them enjoyed a continental breakfast and discussed the plans for the day. They decided to help with the harvest at Harlan Hurst that morning and go on a hot air balloon ride that afternoon. That night, there was a winemaker's dinner at Obelisco Estate that cost $150 per person, but they agreed it would be worth it. Although she doubted Alex would go to the dinner, Piper held out hope.

* * *

The women dressed in their most casual clothes, heeding the warning that things were going to get messy at harvest. Piper had told them about her experience the day before, and she even wore that same outfit to prove it (and so as not to soil yet another outfit.) Layla was second guessing if she wanted to participate in the event, but when she learned Colton would be there, she opted in.

There were so many volunteers that morning that the folks at Harlan Hurst had to create shifts so that each person felt like she contributed. Piper and her crew got the 10 a.m. to noon shift, picking grapes. She'd hoped to have had a role inside the wine barn, but Colton oversaw duties, not Alex. She _did_ see Alex three or four times during her shift, and the two made eyes at each other enough for Polly to notice. Polly had filled in Layla and Camila over breakfast about Piper's fascination with the winemaker, and they were mostly supportive, much to Polly's chagrin.

When their shift ended, all the women complained about sore backs and how dirty they were. They agreed to take showers and rest for a bit before going in the hot air balloon. That gave Piper enough time to say hello to Alex.

"Busy in here?" Piper asked from behind.

The mellow music that had been playing earlier was gone, and instead, the grinding sound of machinery and the jibber-jabber of volunteers was all that she could hear.

"You could say that." Alex clipped a pen to the neck of her t-shirt and faced her. "I didn't think you could get any dirtier than yesterday."

"I guess you were wrong." Piper stretched her shirt out and looked at it. "I never thought I'd say this, but I can't wait to do laundry."

She smiled.

"You wouldn't happen to be going to the winemakers' dinner at Obelisco tonight?" she chanced.

"Fuck." Alex tossed her head back, exposing her neck, and Piper's eyes were drawn to her milky skin. Her _mouth_ was also drawn to the long, pale column, but she sucked in her lips to keep them from latching on to the spot just below Alex's jawline that she was sure would taste like salty earth. "I forgot about that."

Piper tried to hide her grin. "I'll take that as a yes?"

"Why are you smiling? This fucking sucks," she sighed.

Piper creased her brow. "Why?"

"I've been working 14-hour days for the past two weeks, and the only time I have to myself is late at night and at the crack of dawn," Alex grumbled. "Now, I'm going to have to leave my crew here tonight while I go play dress up and schmooze with high-rolling guests."

"Sorry." Piper took a step closer and peered up at her. "I'll be at the dinner, so there's that."

Alex's face warmed. "You think that would make me more excited about going?"

"I hope so," she replied in a low voice.

Alex clenched her jaw and placed her hand on Piper's hip, pulling her closer. She opened her mouth to speak, but before the words came out, a woman frantically tugged on Alex's arm.

"You have to help me," the woman in a string of pearls pleaded. "My daughter is stuck in a barrel!"

"What the fuck is she doing in a barrel?" Alex pinched the bridge of her nose and turned to Piper. "I have to go deal with this." She squeezed her hip before releasing it. "Save a seat for me."

Piper took a step back. "You won't have to sit at a table with the other winemakers?"

"Fuck 'em. I'd rather sit with you." She walked backwards until bumping into one of the workers. "Sorry," she said to the older man and lifted her hand in a wave.

* * *

While the hot air balloon ride was exciting, Piper's thoughts were filled with Alex. She couldn't wrap her mind around how Alex had gotten under her skin so quickly, but there was no denying the mutual attraction. If there was a way she could get out of spending time with her best friend and future bridesmaids, she would have done it, but it wasn't like Alex was sitting at home, twiddling her thumbs. Alex had informed her that morning that she worked 14-hour days—Piper couldn't expect them to spend uninterrupted time together during her busiest season.

As she showered and got ready for their evening at Obelisco, Piper played the one Alexi Murdoch album she owned. There were so many questions she had for Alex, not only about her taste in music, but also about how she and Colton had gotten along as children. Were Alex and her mom like part of the Hurst family or was there animosity there? How and when did her mom die? Did she graduate from high school? Go to college? The more questions Piper came up with, the more antsy she became about when she'd find out answers, and time was not on her side during her brief vacation.

At five o'clock, she met her friends in the lobby, and they drove two miles to Obelisco Estate. There were three huge party tents set up on a field, and like at Harlan Hurst, the backdrop was of rolling hills, covered with grapevines whose leaves were the deep colors of Fall. They checked-in and were told about the four wines that were being passed around prior to dinner service, at which time, another four distinguished wines would be paired with food. There was a small jazz band in the far corner, and the women commented that this event was worlds apart from the barbeque they'd attended the first night in Red Mountain.

They put their purses and jackets on chairs at a table on an end row with a magnificent view of the vineyard. Polly picked up one of the menus and read it silently until she got to the main course. "Looks like your girlfriend's wine is paired with the flank steak."

Piper peered over her shoulder. "It just says Harlan Hurst Cabernet Sauvignon—nothing about Alex…and she's not my girlfriend."

"Will she be here?" Layla enquired.

Piper folded her arms. "Who? My _not_ girlfriend?"

"Give her a break," Camila said. "So she's crushing on the winemaker? It's not like Layla and I aren't doing the same about Colton."

"True," Layla admitted, tapping a finger against her chin.

"I'm just giving her a hard time." Polly flung her arm around her roommate. "If you think she's sexy…"

"And you want her body," Camila finished with a little dance move.

"Thank you, Rod Stewart." Piper rolled her eyes, but she couldn't stop herself from smiling. "…And, _yes,_ to both of those things."

The women laughed until their party was broken up by a server who invited them to try the first of four pre-dinner wines. "This is a Chenin Blanc from Red Mountain Vintners. It's not a commonly grown grape in Washington state, but I think you'll find that it's a perfect beginning to the evening."

"Mmm, that's really good," Polly commented.

"I don't like fruity whites," Camila replied.

Layla giggled. "I'll drink anything they put in front of me."

Piper didn't comment. She found the wine a little too young and the acid off-putting, but she didn't want to speak in those terms to her friends, so she remained silent.

"When is Colton getting here?" Camila asked.

"He told me he had to wrap up at the winery, so he probably wouldn't arrive until just before dinner." Layla took another sip.

Camila and Layla had a conversation about the merits of Colton, and Polly chimed in every so often. Piper wasn't even the least bit interested in the conversation, so she looked around the outdoor space for other more exciting things to occupy her time before Alex's arrival.

It was a fancy dinner to be sure—men were in blazers and women in dresses. Piper was glad that she'd brought her grey, wool dress; not only was it appropriate for the event, but it was also warm.

They drank the second and third pre-dinner wines, each getting a little better than the one before. Piper enjoyed the Roussanne and had never tasted that varietal before. The space began getting more crowded by the minute, and Piper could see some fanfare happening in the opposite corner of the event space. She wondered if the winemakers had arrived or if there was a VIP among them. After the fourth wine (they were all half-pours) the band announced it was time for everyone to take their seats. Piper reserved the seat next to her for Alex with full support from Camila and Layla and an eye roll from Polly, and there was a seat between Camila and Layla for Colton, who showed up as the first course was being served, looking dapper in a coat and tie.

The butter leaf salad was served with an Obelisco Riesling, and Colton talked about the virtues of the white wine. Her friends hung on his every word, and she was glad that Colton could be a distraction as her thoughts were almost exclusively focused on Alex, who was still nowhere to be found. Under the guise of going to the restroom, Piper excused herself when she was finished with the salad to search for her. They hadn't exchanged phone numbers, so she had no way to get in touch with her. As she walked back to the table, convinced that Alex was going to be a no-show, she felt a hand on her lower back.

"Hey."

Piper glanced to the side to find Alex in a one-piece black pant suit that was cinched at the waist. Her hair was wavy, and she had on eyeshadow and lipstick. Piper stopped in her tracks, mouth agape. She knew Alex was beautiful, but she had no idea how well she'd clean up.

"What's wrong?" Alex asked, seemingly alarmed at Piper's expression.

"Nothing, I…" She closed her mouth and tried to swallow, but her mouth was dry. "I haven't seen you in anything other than jeans and a t-shirt."

She returned her hand to Piper's lower back. "We've known each other for a grand total of 72 hours—there's a lot you haven't seen."

 _Jesus Lord,_ Piper thought _, show me everything_.

Alex escorted her to the side of the tent so that they weren't in the servers' way. "Were you able to save me a seat?"

She smelled like wine and grass and everything that a hot, female winemaker _should_ smell like.

"Yes, right over here." Piper's fingertips skimmed down Alex's arm until they reached her hand and led her to their table. "Everyone, this is Alex Vause, the winemaker at Harlan Hurst."

Alex smiled. "Thank you for volunteering this morning."

"It was fun, but messy," Layla said, shaking Alex's hand.

"Well, we couldn't have done it without you, so thanks for sacrificing your clothing for wine's sake."

"Ma'am, would you like the first course?" a server asked.

"It looks like everyone is finished, so I'll just have whatever's next." She put a napkin on her lap. "Which one of you is the bride to be?"

That's all Alex needed to ask to have at least two of the women eating out of her hand. Piper wondered if Alex realized how charming she could be. There was no question that the winemaker was rough around the edges, but she had a way about her that could coax anyone into her web if she simply tried.

As they ate the second course and drank a buttery Chardonnay, Alex's hand found its way to Piper's thigh. Although the initial touch was a surprise, it felt ordinary—like they'd been a couple for years, _and that's just what couples do_. Alex glanced at her after a few seconds, seemingly to see if she had a problem with the touch, but Piper reassured her by placing her hand on top of Alex's.

A woman stepped onto the stage and did a quick microphone check before introducing herself. "Good evening, everyone, and thank you for coming. My name is Erin McAllister, and my family has owned and operated Five Vines Winery since 1982."

Alex removed her hand and cleared her throat. Piper looked at her, fork mid-air, and noticed she wasn't paying attention to the woman on stage. She glanced at Colton, who had a concerned expression on his face as he stared at Alex.

"This Chardonnay was aged in new, American oak and was bottled last year," the woman continued. "It won the gold medal in the Washington Wine Association competition just last month. Please enjoy."

Piper set her fork down. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah," she tried, taking a sip of water.

"What am I missing here?" Piper kept her voice down to ensure the conversation was exclusively between the two of them.

Alex scratched the back of her head and took a deep breath. "Erin is my ex-girlfriend."

"Oh." She lifted her eyebrows. "Ok." Piper didn't know what to say—should she change the subject? Ask about when and why they broke up? Join in her friends' conversation? She sipped the Chardonnay, which happened to be delicious, and waited for Alex to break the awkward silence.

"We broke up on New Year's Eve," she offered a minute later.

Piper set her glass down. "Sorry to hear that."

"It was a shitty, public spectacle," she sighed. "If you see a few eyes on me, that's probably why."

That piqued Piper's curiosity, but she didn't think that was the time nor the place to dig deeper. "The only eyes on you right now are mine."

Alex finally looked at her as a slow smile spread across her face. "Good to know."

They returned to their meals, Layla asking Alex a question about barrel aging, and things returned to normal. Piper wanted to whisk Alex away and hear more about her personal life and this _Erin McAllister_ , but the conversation was flowing nicely, and she didn't want to ruin that.

"Excuse me, Alex." A man with a bad toupee tapped her on the shoulder. "You're up next."

She wiped her mouth with a napkin, then stood. "Be back in a few."

Piper watched her walk to the stage where Erin had been 20 minutes earlier and announce the next food/wine pairing. When Alex talked about wine, she did so with extreme eloquence and poise. Piper noticed a few guests talking about her while she was on stage, and she heard words like _stunning_ and _gorgeous_ and _what a shame_ all around her.

She spotted Erin in the crowd, whose eyes seemed glued to Alex. The woman sitting next to her said something in her ear, and her head flew back with obnoxious laughter. Alex didn't seem to notice or care—she just explained the wine and left the stage, taking the long way back to her seat, most likely to avoid the center of the room where Erin was seated.

"She _is_ hot," Layla whispered to Piper.

She nearly choked on her wine. "I don't think 'thank you' is the appropriate response, so…"

Layla shrugged. "I'm just saying, I'd hit that if I were into women."

Polly leaned forward. "Don't egg her on."

There was no doubt Piper would gladly _hit that_ , but as outlandish as it seemed for such a short amount of time, it was more than that. She was attracted to more than just Alex's physical appearance, though she had to admit that she looked particularly striking that night. And that black pants suit would give Piper months of pleasure when she closed her eyes, touched herself and needed a sexual release.

"You really do know your stuff," Camila said as Alex sat back down.

"Thanks, I hope you enjoy the wine." She smiled at Piper before taking a sip. "This is a year older than the first one you drank in New York."

She swirled the wine, and then sniffed it before taking a sip. " _Wow_."

"You're just saying that." Alex grinned.

"No, seriously…this is the wine I fell in love with six months ago." She took another long sip. "It's delicious, Alex."

"I agree." Polly said, swirling her glass. "Then again, I'm a sucker for Cabs."

Piper raised her glass. "Here's to a fascinating, young winemaker who we're lucky enough to know."

"Cheers!" The women tapped their glasses against each other.

Alex's hand once again found its way to her lap, and Piper entwined their fingers. It made it impossible to dig in to the entrée, but she didn't care about eating in that moment. Alex's hand felt perfect in hers—like she was trying on hand-stitched, leather gloves made exclusively for her.

"This is extraordinary," a man said out of nowhere, extending a bottle of the Cab towards Alex. "Will you sign our bottle?"

"Sure." She took the proffered marker and signed it. "Thank you."

That simple act opened the doors to other guests, approaching Alex about her wine. "I'm going to have to tend to this," she whispered as she leaned towards Piper. "Meet me at my place later?"

Her eyes shot open wide. "Your place as in your _house_?"

"Hello, everyone," a woman announced on the microphone. "Ms. Vause will join the other winemakers at a signing table near the entrance after dessert. You can buy any of the wines served tonight under the awning to the right."

Alex stood, one hand on the back of Piper's chair, and bent over. "I think you know where it is."

Piper nodded, pretty sure she knew what she was agreeing to, which sent an exhilarating thrill through her body. "See you soon."

She had a difficult time waiting until the evening was done to make her way to Alex's house. She fidgeted in her seat, walked around the event space, and browsed the wines for sale. Her friends talked about having a nightcap at the only bar in town, and Colton agreed to drive them.

"I think I'll just head back," Piper said, shrugging into her jacket as they headed into the parking lot.

She'd tried to find Alex to tell her she was leaving, but there was a crowd around the winemaker's table. Her thoughts drifted to Erin McAllister and if she'd try to steal a bit of Alex's time, but from what she'd witnessed earlier, Alex wanted nothing to do with the other woman.

"Suit yourself," Camila said, hooking her arm through Polly's. "See you in the morning."

"I hope you get some," Layla whispered in her ear before running to catch up with Colton.

A blush crept over Piper's face at hearing those words, but truth be told, she hoped the same thing.

* * *

Author's Notes: First, thank you so much for the reviews! They actually _have_ motivated me to finish the story, and while I was 80% finished when I began posting, I'm proud to say I'm now about 90% done. Second, this is likely going to be the last chapter that I post for the next four or five days as I'll be traveling without my laptop. At least this was the longest chapter yet! Third, yes, I like a slow burn, and I'm sorry it's torturing you. Fourth, for those of you who like to see photos of places I describe in my stories on Tumblr, I got a new laptop and lost all of my saved pictures. I'll see what I can dig up online, but I hope my descriptions allow you to conjure up your own images. Finally, except for Harlan Hurst, all of the wineries and places listed in this story are real. If you have access to Obelisco wines, BUY SOME and enjoy a glass while reading this story.

Thanks again for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

This section is rated M for Mature. Please read responsibly.

* * *

She drove the rental car back to Harlan Hurst but didn't even go into the inn before walking to Alex's house, which, as she recalled was just down the western slope. She had no idea what kind of car Alex drove, but there were none parked in the driveway, so she assumed she was still at the wine dinner, hopefully not cornered by her ex.

The part of the house Piper had seen that day in the vineyard when they were having lunch was actually the back of the house, and she didn't think much of it then. She walked around the other side, which was facing away from the inn, and was astonished at what she saw. She climbed up four steps to a raised deck that featured a firepit, a gas grill and tasteful lawn furniture. The main wall was almost entirely glass. The drapes were wide open and a lamp was on, so Piper could see directly into the living room, which appeared bright and airy with warm orange, yellow and ivory furnishings. There was a Navajo rug flanked by a leather sofa, a wicker chair and a round, metallic coffee table. The artwork was minimal, but Piper figured the pièce de résistance was the view out of the wide expanse of floor-to-ceiling windows.

She turned around to check out the view from where she was standing, and although it was too dark to determine exactly what Alex looked at from the comfort of her living room, she could see lights twinkling on hilltops far away. The property was perfectly secluded despite being less than half a mile from the Harlan Hurst Inn.

Piper heard the sound of crushed gravel and made her way around the house to watch Alex pull up in an old pickup truck. She turned off the headlights, and then stepped out.

"I'm having a 'one of these things is not like the other' moment," Piper greeted.

Alex smiled, tossed her hair over one shoulder and walked towards her. "What do you mean?"

She eyed her up and down, still amazed at how beautiful Alex looked. "You, dressed like that, getting out of an old farm truck. It just doesn't add up."

"My Rolls-Royce is in the shop," Alex snickered. She ran her hand down Piper's arm but didn't latch their hands together, and then walked to the back door. "You could've let yourself in."

"I didn't realize it was unlocked." Piper followed, contemplating how different life in Red Mountain was compared to Manhattan. She would never dream of leaving her house unlocked. "Besides, I was enjoying the view from your deck."

"It's much better during the day." She lobbed her keys on a side table next to a fiddle-leaf fig tree. "Can I get you something to drink? Wine, beer, water…?"

Ignoring Alex's offer, Piper approached the kitchen counter where four identical wine bottles were standing. "What do you have here?"

"I'm doing an oxidation experiment," Alex said, scrolling on her iPod and settling on Nick Drake, which wasn't lost on Piper. "I opened the same wines at the same time two days ago, and they're sitting in various states of air exposure." She brought the one without the cork to her nose and smelled it, and then tilted it towards Piper. "Oxygen is the enemy in wine making, except on two occasions: during fermentation and after it's bottled." She poured a couple of ounces into a glass. "The reason you want to swirl wine vigorously is to reintroduce oxygen. Swirl, smell, swallow." She demonstrated, and then handed the glass to Piper. "What does it taste like?"

She shrugged. "I don't know…Merlot?"

"Not the varietal—the overall structure." She grabbed another glass, and then poured from the next bottle, which had a cork sticking more than halfway out. "Do the same thing for this one and so on down the line." Alex poured until three more glasses were ready.

Piper tasted all of them after Alex. "The first one was kind of dull."

"Exactly. That's how I'd describe it—dull." Alex took another sip, swishing it around in her mouth. "And the wine gets sharper—more pronounced—as you go down the line, right?"

She nodded. "The best one to me was the third."

"That was the one with the cork plugged in as far as I could push it without getting stuck." Alex poured a full glass and slid it towards her. "The reason cork works so well to age wine is that its molecular structure makes a watertight seal but lets tiny bits of air move in and out, allowing the flavor and aroma molecules of the wine to evolve and become more complex over time."

"That's fascinating," Piper commented, taking another sip. "The same wine tastes different depending on how much air it's exposed to."

Alex stared at her, smile morphing into an intense gaze. "Exactly."

They remained quiet for a moment, and Piper wondered what Alex was thinking. Was she simply enjoying the company or had _kissing_ entered her mind?

"Would you like the grand tour?"

"Yeah, sure."

She showed her around the living room, which was even warmer and more welcoming than Piper could tell from outside.

"It didn't look like this when my mom was alive." She flicked on a floor lamp. "A few months after she died, I pretty much ripped the entire house apart. I couldn't live in the same space that I'd shared with her all those years."

Piper ran her hand along the back of the butterscotch leather sofa. "When did she pass away?"

"Six years ago." She opened the sliding glass door and walked outside. "We'd built this deck together and enjoyed one summer our here, grilling and hanging out by the firepit almost every night."

Piper followed her outside. "I'm sorry for your loss."

"Thanks." She smiled dimly. "It gets easier every year." She stepped aside and motioned her hand to let Piper walk inside before her. "You saw the kitchen." She pointed to the small kitchen that was well-equipped with stainless steel appliances.

"I love the way the whole room feels." Piper sucked in a long breath through her nose, and it smelled like baked apples and recently blown-out candles. "It's so open and airy."

"The vaulted ceilings and glass give it that effect." She walked upstairs, turning around to make sure Piper was behind her. "Colton's mom is an interior designer, so she walked me through the whole process. In fact, she designed all of the rooms at the inn."

"She's definitely got a knack for how to make a space feel cozy." Piper entered her bedroom, which was somewhat of a loft just up the stairs. " _Wow_."

It was all grays and blues with soft, golden light coming from the paper lantern that hung above the bed. The color palette, along with the thick, layered bedding, screamed _relaxation_. There was one big window facing East, flanked by indigo curtains that were halfway open.

Piper stepped in front of the window and peered into the darkness. "I'm sure you can see the sunrise from up here."

Alex chuckled. "It's rare that I'm in bed when the sun comes up, but if I am, I'm probably intentionally sleeping in and avoiding the sun."

She turned to face Alex. "It's a beautiful space—the whole house is lovely."

"Thank you. It feels like home, so I guess that's the point." She smiled humbly. "There's a guest room downstairs and another full bath, but I rarely have guests. In fact, I don't know if anyone has ever slept in there."

"I wish we had a spare bedroom," Piper commented, thinking about the cramped space she lived in.

"You have a roommate?" She headed back downstairs.

"Yeah, Polly, the bride-to-be. We've lived together since college."

"That's a long time to live with someone." She made her way into the kitchen. "You ok with wine, or do you want something else?"

"This is fine; it's great, actually." She picked up her abandoned wine glass and took a sip.

The tour was over, the wine education was complete, and now they were in Alex's house at 11 o'clock at night with two choices: get to know each other better through small talk or get horizontal on the nearest flat surface. Piper hoped that one would lead to the other, but the longer it took for them to lock lips, the more anxious she'd be, wondering _if_ or _when_ they'd get to it.

Alex picked up her iPod again, adjusting the volume. "Music ok?"

"Yeah." She sat on the edge of the sofa. "I noticed you're playing Nick Drake."

"I figured since we talked about him yesterday...I'll put this playlist on shuffle." Alex tossed the iPod onto the wicker chair and nudged her glasses. "I feel stupid in this outfit right now."

"You don't _look_ stupid," she offered around a sip of wine. "But if you want to change, I don't mind."

"Are you comfortable in what you're wearing?"

Piper looked down at her outfit. "It's not as comfortable as jeans or sweats, but it's not terrible."

She kicked off her heels, head down but eyes trained on Piper. "You look good, by the way."

"Thanks, so do you." She set the wine glass aside, putting her fidgety hands in her lap. At least Alex had noticed her effort.

She walked slowly up the stairs, heels in hand. "I have some sweats if you want."

"I'm ok, but thank you."

She was in unchartered territory and had no fucking idea if she should've agreed to change into Alex's clothes or remain in her dress. The last time Piper had hooked up with a woman was six months ago, and that was a drunken one night stand where she never had to think about where the evening was headed—that was blatantly clear when their tongues were in each other's mouths in a corner of a bar.

"Are you enjoying your stay at the inn?" Alex called from upstairs.

"It's better than I ever expected," she replied, returning to her glass of wine. "Polly was upset with me for booking a trip to Eastern Washington instead of Napa, but I think even _she's_ regretting giving me shit about it."

"We're still not a destination for people outside the Pacific Northwest," she commented. "But tourism has spiked like crazy over the past three or four years. I just wish Cecelia publicized the inn a little better."

"Think about it." Piper stood and looked around the room, picking up a couple of framed photographs of Alex and her mother. "Your wines are way less expensive than California, and the inn is literally half the price of the hotels in Napa Valley. I would be shocked if this place didn't explode with tourists over the next couple of years."

"The problem is the lack of lodging options." She came downstairs in a pair of baggy, gray sweatpants and red hoodie, and Piper couldn't decide which version of Alex she preferred—dressed to the nines or bedtime casual. "There's our inn, the bed & breakfast at Hedges that has like eight rooms, and the motel in Benton City that's directly on the highway. People don't want to drive more than 10 minutes to a hotel after they've been wine tasting all day." She walked into the kitchen, returning with two bottles of water. "I heard they broke ground on a hotel in West Richland last month, but that'll be at least another eight to ten months before it's finished." She handed a bottle to Piper.

"You look super comfortable." She was leaning towards this version of relaxed Alex.

"Offer still stands—" She hooked her thumb over a shoulder. "I can run up and get you something to change into."

The fact that Alex said _she_ could run upstairs meant that it wasn't an invitation for both to go upstairs while Piper changed. "I'm fine, thanks."

Alex sat next to her, tucking one leg under the other. "How'd you enjoy the food and wine tonight?"

"It was fabulous," she replied, taking a sip of water. "Yours was my favorite."

"You don't have to placate me," she chuckled.

"I'm not. I'm partial to Cabs to begin with, and yours has that perfect balance of oak and fruit."

"Thank you." She took a sip of water. "Some of the reds they're making around here are way too oaked if you ask me, but there are some solid ones at Obelisco, Hamilton and Red Mountain Vintners."

Piper put the water bottle down, and picked up the glass of wine, swirling the red liquid inside. "I didn't hear you say Five Vines."

Alex's eye twitched.

"No, you didn't." She reached for Piper's glass and took a sip before handing it back. "You're a bit of a meddler, aren't you?"

She shrugged. "My friends would say so. Maybe I missed my calling as an investigative reporter."

"Maybe." Alex smiled, and then exhaled before diving in. "Erin McAllister…You have to agree, she's gorgeous."

Piper felt a strange surge of jealousy sweep through her body. "I wouldn't say _gorgeous_ , maybe _attractive_."

Alex pulled a look like she disagreed but didn't want to argue the point. "We've known each other most of our lives. She's seven years older than me and is the one who put the idea in my head that I could be a winemaker."

Piper gave her a quizzical look. "I thought Felix did that?"

"Felix allowed me to be his shadow, but he didn't encourage me one way or the other," she began. "Erin did. She mentored three women who wanted to get into the wine business, and I happened to be one of them. The other two never made it, by the way. Eventually, Erin and I started dating, and we were off-and-on for about five years."

Piper wasn't sure how much she really wanted to know, but her curiosity got the best of her. "What happened?"

"She never quite let go of the whole mentoring thing, so she was this dominant force." Alex leaned forward, elbows on her knees. "And I'm not the most docile woman, so we got into some pretty big arguments."

Piper stayed quiet and sipped the last of the wine.

"On New Year's Eve, we were at this party at one of the local wineries, and she _laid the fuck into me_ in front of everyone." She sat back up, running her hands over her thighs. "There had to be at least 50 people there, most of whom I know well."

"Why would she do that?"

"I was literally ten minutes late for the party, which was a thing between us—she hated that I was always running late," Alex sighed. "So she picked that night to tell me what a horrible person I was for not respecting her time."

"Was she drunk?"

"I have no idea, and at the time, I didn't care."

She set the empty wine glass down. "Sounds like she might have some anger issues."

"That's an understatement." Alex let out a quiet, easy breath and put a hand on Piper's knee. It was the first time they'd touched since dinner. "Anyway, it's still awkward between us, which I'm sure you picked up on tonight."

She covered Alex's hand with her own. "Hopefully your paths won't cross too often."

"Hopefully," she smiled. "But it's a small town."

The air between them thickened, and Alex glanced at her mouth. Piper licked her lips in anticipation for what was hopefully going to be their first kiss, and she didn't have to wait long to confirm her suspicion. Alex lurched forward, one hand cradling Piper's cheek, the other on her knee. Piper leaned into the kiss, putting her hands on Alex's upper arms. They moaned simultaneously as the kiss deepened and tongues began to tangle. She tasted like red wine, and Piper wouldn't mind if they stayed fused that way for hours, though the wetness that began to pool between her legs indicated that she wouldn't mind taking things to the next level.

The hand that had been on Piper's knee crept higher, and the one on her cheek raked into her hair. Alex's force was enough to push Piper backwards, until her back was flush against the sofa. The combination of hands and mouth sent Piper into overdrive, and she tugged Alex onto her lap, hands traveling down her back to her ass until Alex was straddling her. Both hands found their way into Piper's blonde hair, and her lips left her mouth as they traveled across her jawline to her ear.

"I like the way you taste," Alex breathed.

Her hands journeyed down the backs of Alex's thighs. "Me, too."

She massaged Piper's breast with one hand, while the other grasped her neck. Alex's mouth returned to Piper's, and the kiss intensified.

" _Now_ , would you be willing to get out of that dress?" Alex teased between kisses.

"Was that what you were trying to do earlier?" She moved the hoodie to the side and latched onto the spot where Alex's neck met her shoulder. "Get me naked?"

She tilted her neck to the side, giving Piper more room with which to work. "I was trying to be subtle."

Piper looked up at her, wondering if her own eyes looked as dark and wild as Alex's. "All you had to do was ask."

That was all it took for Alex to somehow get Piper out of her dress, while they remained mostly seated. She wasted no time sucking and licking and kissing her way all over Piper's writhing body, including her center. Piper was in ecstasy, eyes rolling back in her head when she felt Alex's tongue on her pussy. She'd successfully removed Alex's sweatshirt while they were both still upright, and was more than happy to watch her breasts sway as Alex licked her on her hands and knees.

Piper's orgasm was so loud that she thought the people at the inn might have heard her. She returned the favor almost immediately, sticking two fingers inside Alex while eating her out.

"That's it…that's it! Right there," Alex panted. "Oh, _fuck_ …" With that, she came in Piper's mouth, and Piper smiled as she kissed her way back up her body.

She tossed an arm over Piper's back. "God, I wish we would've done this sooner."

"Me, too." Piper rested her head on Alex's chest. "Tomorrow's my last full day."

She pulled back a little, tilting Piper's chin up so that they could look in each other's eyes. "Stay."

"What do you mean, _stay_?" She let out a short laugh. "I have to get back to New York for work."

"I thought you ran your own business?" Alex rubbed circles on her back.

She brushed a chunk of dark hair over Alex's shoulder. "I do, but we've got orders to fill and products to make."

"Just two or three more days," Alex pleaded. "You could help me with the wine production. I'd even pay you."

Piper kissed her shoulder blade. "I don't know the first thing about how to make wine."

"You do, actually," she replied, flipping them until they were on their sides, facing each other. "And what you don't know, I'll teach you."

She ran her fingertips along the dip of Alex's waist. "You're serious?"

"I am." She rubbed her thumb across Piper's lips. "Stay with me. I'll buy your plane ticket back home, just stay."

A smile cracked on her face. "Ok."

"Yeah?" Alex's smile mirrored hers.

She nodded, smile breaking into laughter. "Yeah."

They kissed hard on the mouth, which led to a second round of sex, followed by a third, until they finally made it to Alex's bedroom at one o'clock in the morning.

* * *

Surely Piper was dreaming as the alarm clock sounded. She reached for the offending device, but her phone or an alarm clock was nowhere nearby. She sat up, confused as to where she was, and then she noticed a slumbering Alex next to her, sheets covering only one leg.

"Alex?" She shook her shoulder. " _Alex_?"

"Hmm?" Her eyes fluttered open. "My phone is downstairs."

Piper ran a hand through her knotted hair. "Go turn it off."

"You go." She twisted until she was facing Piper. "I'm too exhausted."

She pouted and laid back down, facing Alex. "I don't want to go all the way down there."

She chuckled and reached for her. "You're cute when you're tired and defiant."

Piper snuggled closer. "I'll lay here with you all day if you just go turn off that _fucking_ alarm."

Alex kissed her on the forehead, then the nose, and finally on the lips. "I wish I could lay here all day, but I have wine to make."

"Ugh," she whined, pulling the covers higher. "Can you take the day off?"

That caused raucous laughter. "No, babe. I can't." She kissed a trail across her shoulder and rolled over Piper until her feet landed on the floor. "I really, _really_ want to stay here with you, but duty calls." She walked over to the window and opened the curtains all the way until the sun shone in. "We just missed the sunrise."

"You're standing naked in the window." Piper smiled and wiped the sleep out of her eyes. "Aren't you afraid someone will see you?"

"They'd have to have super powerful binoculars." She pulled on a t-shirt and jogged downstairs, turning off the alarm.

In place of the annoying buzz came music. Piper smiled, remembering the last song that had played when they were still fucking downstairs until Alex's back hit the table where the speaker sat, knocking it over and turning it off. The Indigo Girls rang through the speaker again, singing _Share the Moon_.

"Coffee?" Alex called from downstairs.

"Yes, please," she replied, sitting up and looking around the room. She could get used to waking up there—the bed was soft, the pillows firm, and the sun shined brilliantly through the window. The bedroom smelled like fresh linen and eucalyptus, and Piper wondered if there was a Glade plug-in somewhere in the room or if it was just naturally scented that way.

Alex padded back up the stairs and into the bathroom, which Piper hadn't seen the night before. "Want to shower with me?"

Piper crawled out of bed, following Alex into the blue-tiled bathroom that had an open air shower with a giant showerhead in the middle of the ceiling.

She pulled Alex's t-shirt off and kissed her back, running her hands down her sides. "Only if it leads to sex."

"I'm not usually a fan of shower sex, but I suppose I could make an exception," she replied, turning in her arms and kissing her soundly. "I only have 20 minutes."

Piper smiled against her mouth. "I'm pretty sure it didn't take you a full 20 minutes to cum last night, so I'm up to the task."

"Like you were some big holdout," Alex teased, turning the water on, and when it was warm enough, they stepped under the spray, hands and mouths never leaving each other's body. As promised, Piper delivered a powerful orgasm as Alex hung one leg over her shoulder and bucked against her mouth.

After coming down from her orgasm, Alex cupped Piper's face and kissed her. "I'll return the favor tonight."

"I'll hold you to it."

They washed off, and Alex stepped into a pair of grey jeans and pulled on a green t-shirt with an unbuttoned flannel shirt over it. Piper took her time drying off as she watched Alex get dressed, and then brush her teeth.

"Unless you want to stumble back to the inn wearing the dress from last night, you can grab anything out of my closet." She ran a comb through her wet hair. "I'll leave the coffee pot on. Stay as long as you want." Alex pecked her lips three times, and then fled downstairs.

Piper stood on the landing and looked downstairs at the disheveled living room—a blanket was in a ball on the ground, a lamp was knocked over, all the decorative pillows were on the floor, and her empty wine glass laid on its side.

The song changed to _Face Like Thunder,_ and she smiled at their similar taste in music. She returned to the bedroom, flipping through Alex's closet for something to wear. The clothes smelled exactly like Alex—earthy, yet sweet. She settled on a pair of black yoga pants and a long-sleeved shirt with _1962_ _Seattle World's Fair_ across the front with a sketch of the Space Needle.

Piper tidied up the place, poured a cup of coffee and sat on the sofa, kicking her legs up and staring out the wall of glass. Although she couldn't see the view the night before, she wasn't surprised at what was out there: rows and rows of grapevines, crawling over hills as far as the eye could see. There was a thick patch of trees to the right, and she wondered if they were apples. A person on a tractor drove down a narrow road, kicking up dirt as he made his way to the orchard. Piper turned off the music and opened the sliding door just enough to hear the noises outside. Doves cooed, a windchime rang, and the breeze made the leaves on the trees rustle. She heard a dog barking in the distance and tried to spot it with squinty eyes.

She sipped her coffee, thinking this would be a good way to live. The hustle and bustle of New York had its own appeal, but she'd lived in the Manhattan chaos long enough. There was nothing wrong with stepping away from city life for a while. Thoughts rumbled through her head like thunder, and she allowed her mind to wander; to dream.

And then there were thoughts of Alex—her smile, her laugh, her knowledge about wine, her confidence, her maturity. She'd only known the winemaker for four days, and it wasn't enough. They'd only scratched the surface, learning more about each other in the short amount of time, but Piper yearned to know more. What did she do on a day off? Was she formally educated? Did she want to stay in Red Mountain forever? Had she ever been wine tasting in other parts of the country or the world? Piper thought about writing a formal list of questions but decided it would be best to let their conversations flow naturally.

The sex had been spectacular. Just the thought of it sent shivers throughout her body, and she had to cross her legs. Alex had a talented tongue and even more talented fingers. She was an unselfish lover, and Piper could tell there was an adventurous streak in Alex that was begging to come out in the bedroom if they'd only had more time.

She poured one more cup of coffee and contemplated how in the hell she'd inform Polly and the other women about delaying her departure. Piper didn't think Layla or Camila would care, but if they did, they'd be excited for her. On the other hand, Polly would likely be upset. She'd question Piper's judgement and chastise her for falling into bed with the first good-looking woman in town. Although she didn't need to defend herself, Piper didn't want to face her best friend's rant. She'd spend the day with her friends, doing whatever they wanted to do, and would join them for dinner in the barrel room that night. At the end of the evening, she'd tell them about her extended stay, which meant she'd tell them about having spent the night with Alex.

Piper left the house and walked back up to the inn through the vines that had been harvested the day before. She watched a crew of workers four rows away pluck grapes and toss them into baskets, and two of them hauled the baskets to a wheel barrow. For a second, she thought about offering to help, but she was afraid she'd lose track of time and miss out on time she needed to spend with Polly and the gang.

She successfully made it to her room before any of her friends saw her, and she quickly changed into her own clothes. She sniffed Alex's shirt once more before packing it into her suitcase, not sure if she'd return it to its owner or hold on to it permanently.


	6. Chapter 6

Piper and her friends spent the morning and early afternoon at an event down the hill called _Making Food with Wine_. She was surprised at how many recipes called for either red or white wines, and she and Polly agreed to host a dinner party in the future with some of the dishes they learned how to make at the event.

So far that day, Piper had successfully avoided questions about what she'd done after the Obelisco dinner, but she hadn't been so successful in keeping her thoughts from drifting to Alex. Even though she knew full well that Alex was likely in the thick of things in the wine production room, she wondered _exactly_ what she was doing—scientific testing of grapes, pushing down the cap, repairing the de-stemmer again? She also wondered if she had thought about her that day. She hoped Alex wouldn't regret asking her to stay for a few more days and that Polly would find the grace to give Piper her blessing.

Cecelia, who she hadn't seen since the first day they were there, greeted the women in the lobby. "Are you enjoying your time here?"

Piper smiled. "It's been magnificent—more than I could've hoped for."

The other women chimed in with praise of the inn and all the events they'd been to.

"I wanted to let you know that Alex Vause has arranged massages for each of you prior to dinner tonight," Cecelia stated.

They looked at each other with astonishment.

"Is this something she normally does?" Piper enquired.

Cecelia giggled. "No."

"I could use a massage," Polly said, cracking her back.

"Me, too," Layla replied.

Piper turned her attention back to Cecelia, finding it odd but generous that Alex would do such a thing. "Is there anything we need to do?"

"I'll just give a call to the masseuses, and they'll be here in a few hours." Cecelia walked behind the reception desk. "Each massage will be in your own room."

They chatted about what a treat it would be to get a rub-down.

"I have to give it to your woman," Polly said, putting an arm around Piper's shoulders. "If she's trying to get in our good graces, she's on the right track."

Piper smiled, wondering if that's what Alex had in mind, not bothering to correct Polly about Alex being _her woman_. "I'm glad."

"Dinner will be in the barrel room at 6:30 this evening. I hope that's alright," Cecelia stated.

"Great," two of them said simultaneously.

"Thank you so much." Piper gave her a big smile. "I hope we'll see you later."

With that, they went to their rooms, excited about the opportunity to get pampered.

* * *

After enjoying a leisurely lunch on the patio that afternoon, Piper went to her room, opening the curtains to see if she could spot Alex down below, but she wasn't visible from her vantage point. She was also nowhere to be found while they were on the patio. Piper would've poked around the grounds to say a quick hello if it weren't for Polly hooking arms with her and escorting her through the lobby.

She stood in the center of the room and admired the modern yet comfortable surroundings, knowing now that Colton's mom was responsible for the feel of the room. A few simple touches reminded Piper of Alex's house, like the quality bedding and soft lighting. A smile touched her lips as she felt more in tune with the inn. She heard a knock on the door, and thinking it was the massage technician, she opened it and was greeted by a smirking Alex, forearm resting against the doorframe.

"Ready for your massage?"

She raised her eyebrows. " _You_?"

"How else was I supposed to get you alone in the middle of the day?" She used her leg to shut the door as she enveloped Piper in her arms and leaned in for a kiss.

"What about the others?" she asked between kisses, not really concerned with her friends but feeling the need to understand Alex's plan.

"They're getting pampered by licensed massage therapists." She pulled Piper's shirt over her head and dove down to suck a nipple in her mouth. "You, on the other hand, are getting a special massage—one where both of us are naked."

Piper grinned as she began tugging at Alex's shirt.

They had sex in the fluffy king sized bed until both women were breathless. Piper knew she had a problem with being too vocal during sex, and she hoped the people in the room next to hers weren't there, otherwise, they would have known exactly what was going on in her room.

Piper cuddled next to her. "How'd you get time off?"

Alex kissed her temple and rubbed her bare back. "I'm the boss, remember?"

She toyed with Alex's nipple until it was taut. "Yeah, but from what it sounded like this morning, you don't get to take time off."

"I can take an hour here and there," she replied. "And I hate to say it, but that hour is just about up."

"No." Piper squeezed her.

"What do you mean 'no'?" Alex laughed. "I have to rack the Chard to the secondary fermentation vessel."

" _Rack the Chard_? Is that a band or something?" She yawned and felt Alex chuckle against her body.

They laid there for a moment, so quiet that the only sound in the room was their breaths going in and out and the occasional rustle of the sheets.

"I really have to go." Alex kissed her once more before shuffling out of bed. "I'll see you later."

Piper stretched, and the sheets rolled under her breasts. "This was a really nice surprise."

" _Those_ are really nice," Alex commented, staring at her chest as she stepped into her jeans. "In fact, I don't think I've given them the attention they deserve."

She put her hands behind her head, leaving her chest exposed. "You're welcome to do so now."

Alex bit down hard, flexing her jaw. "God, I wish." She took two steps towards the bed and placed a tender kiss on Piper's mouth. "Thanks for indulging me."

"Thanks for thinking of a way to escape." She put her hand on Alex's cheek. "And for hooking my friends up."

"You're welcome." She entered the bathroom and unscrewed the cap on a tiny bottle of mouthwash. "Although I'd love to have your taste in my mouth for the rest of the day, I'd rather my workers not smell pussy on my breath."

Piper smiled, turned on by Alex saying the word _pussy_ as she watched her gargle and then splash water on her face.

Alex dried her face, and then opened the door and looked down the hallway to make sure no one was there. "See you later."

"Bye." She waved.

After the door was shut, Piper rolled over in bed with a huge grin. She smelled the pillow next to her, and it smelled like freshly cut grass and grapes. She could get used to this.

* * *

Piper put on her last piece of clean clothing for their final dinner at Harlan Hurst—a dusty-blue tunic with brown leather boots. She curled her hair and put on more makeup than she'd worn over the past five days, hoping that Alex would appreciate the effort when they saw each other later that night. She'd have to figure out a way to sneak out of the inn without her friends finding out, but no matter what she'd have to endure, she _would_ sleep with Alex that night.

The women met in the barrel room, and they'd all dressed for the occasion. The number of selfies Layla took was obnoxious, but Piper acquiesced as this would certainly be a trip to remember.

The evening began with cocktail hour, and they had the choice of hand-shaken martinis or gimlets. They made several toasts along the way, and Piper was pleased with the way the trip had turned out, meeting Alex notwithstanding.

Thirty minutes into the evening, Cecelia made an appearance. "I hope you've all enjoyed your time at Harlan Hurst. It's a tradition to have the final dinner in this barrel room, which was the last mark that my husband left on the property before he passed away. This is a very special room—those 24 barrels over there were the first my family used to make wine." She pointed to her left. "The bottles in those cases represent every wine we've ever produced."

The women glanced around the room in awe, and Piper was almost teary at Cecelia's nod to nostalgia.

"My oldest son, who you may know as Colton's father, made this table himself with wood foraged from pine trees on our property," Cecelia continued. "The silverware and China have been passed down for four generations." She smiled with reverence. "As you can see, there's a lot of meaning for my family in this room, and I'm ever so pleased to share it with you."

They all clapped, and Piper hugged Cecelia. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." She pulled back. "I'll leave you in good hands as you enjoy your final meal."

Layla wiped her eyes and commented how remarkable their experience had been, and Polly and Camila joined the chorus. A delicate bell rang, and a man in a tuxedo, the one who'd been making cocktails, asked them to be seated.

"Before we serve the first course, I'd like you to hear about the wine you'll be enjoying this evening." He stepped aside, and Alex breezed in.

Piper's mouth hung open—Alex hadn't mentioned anything about being at the dinner.

She'd changed into a copper-colored sweater and tight black pants with a gold necklace and earrings. She'd looked incredible the night before, and now, she looked even more irresistible. Piper eyed her up and down and instinctively licked her lips.

"Hi." Alex eyed each of the women. "I hope you enjoyed the massages."

They ooh'd and aah'd at the massages they'd received, thanking Alex for her generosity. Piper bit her lower lip, trying to contain a smirk. She felt her cheeks warm and hoped that her friends didn't notice.

"It's my pleasure to introduce you to the wines you'll drink tonight. First, we have a 2014 Roussanne." As Alex spoke, two servers filled their glasses. "Roussanne is a delicate white grape from the Rhone Valley and is one of the newest varietals being explored here in Washington. The flavors are reminiscent of pears and aromatic herbal tea, which I thought would go nicely with the poached pear and burrata salad."

"Can you join us for dinner?" Piper blurted out.

Her friends turned their attention to her.

Alex shifted her weight to the other foot. "I've never…I mean, I'm not supposed to…"

"Yes, please, Alex. Have dinner with us," Camila said, pulling out the chair next to her, which happened to be across from Piper.

Polly and Layla nodded their agreement. "If cost is the issue, we'll pick up your tab."

"No, it's not that…" Alex used her index finger to reposition her glasses on the bridge of her nose. "I'm not sure it's appropriate."

"Nonsense!" Camila exclaimed. "We'd love to have you. Right, Piper?"

Piper's eyes widened and she swallowed the lump in her throat. "Yes."

"I'll check with Cecelia. Thanks for the offer." She eyed Piper before walking out of the room.

"Are you sure you guys are ok with this?" Piper asked as soon as Alex was out of earshot.

"Why not? She paid for our massages, plus she can tell us about the wine we're drinking," Layla responded.

"The wine that _she made_ ," Camila continued. "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity."

"Polly?"

She put a hand on the back of Piper's chair. "I get why you're attracted to her, Pipes. It's fine if she joins us."

She wasn't going to argue against having Alex stay for dinner, but Piper didn't know how they'd feel after she told them she was staying a few extra days to be with her.

Alex strode back into the room. "If the offer stands, I'd love to join you."

Alex regaled them with stories about life at Harlan Hurst and described each of the wines they drank with precision. She could be a master at entertaining, which surprised Piper more than it probably should have, considering the first time they met in the winemaking barn. Throughout the evening, they linked ankles under the table, Piper smiling bashfully each time. If she could've reached far enough, she'd have put her hand on Alex's lap throughout dinner, feeling an odd need to physically connect.

By the time dessert rolled around, Alex excused herself. Piper followed her out, not timid about taking her outstretched hand as they left the room.

"Thank you for entertaining us," she said.

She ran her hand down Piper's arm. "It was more fun than I thought it would be."

"Good." Piper kissed her on the side of the mouth. She exhaled a long breath before continuing. "I have to tell them."

Alex pulled her into a hug. "About staying?"

"Mmm hmm," she closed her eyes at the warmth surrounding her.

Alex drew back and looked Piper in the eye. "Want me to stay and try to smooth things over it gets heated in there?"

"No, I'll do it." Piper kissed her on the lips. "But thank you."

Alex ran her knuckles down her cheek. "Can you still come over tonight?"

She pushed her body into Alex, not quite ready to say goodbye even if it _was_ only for an hour or so. "I'll be there as soon as I can."

They kissed once more, this one more intense. "See you soon."

Piper reentered the barrel room, putting a hand on her stomach. "Are you all as stuffed as I am?"

"I ate entirely too much," Polly complained.

"But it was delicious," Camila followed. "I don't know about the rest of you, but I noticed Piper and Alex making eyes at each other the whole time." She wiggled her eyebrows. "What's going on with the two of you, Piper, and don't tell us 'nothing'."

"We, um…" She put her hands on her hips. "Kind of hooked up last night."

Polly hit the table, and the two others gasped. "You didn't!"

"And I'm not flying back with you tomorrow." Piper averted her eyes and took a deep breath. "I'm staying here a few extra days."

"You're _what_?" Polly asked incredulously.

She stood her ground. "I'm staying with Alex."

"I get that she's hot and knows a lot about wine, but _really,_ Piper?" Polly continued.

"Yes, really," she replied. "Alex and I hit it off from the moment we met. When I wasn't with the three of you, I was with her, learning more about wine and getting to know her better."

Polly shook her head. "This is absurd."

"It's not, actually, and I'm not going to bore you with the details." Piper put her hand on the back of a chair. "I want to see how this plays out. Maybe it's nothing, and I'm a fool for staying, but maybe it's _something_ ; I owe it to myself to find out."

"I'm on board," Layla commented. "I mean it. If you feel something for her, and it's pretty clear she feels something for you, then stay. What's the worst that could happen? You spend $200 on a change ticket fee and get to stay in wine country for a few extra days?"

"I'm with Layla," Camila said. "Alex seems like a cool person, and she's totally into you."

"Really?" Piper's smile grew.

"No, not really," Polly responded with an eye roll. "Sure, she's attractive and charming, but the second you leave, she'll move on to someone else."

"What makes you say that?" Piper asked, brows furrowed.

"Just look at her! It doesn't appear she has to work very hard to attract women."

"I'm not a fucking floozy!" She crossed her arms. "No, I don't know Alex all that well, but from what I _do_ know, she's generous and sincere. She loves her job and is damn good at it. Alex sees me for who I am, not where I'm from or who my family is. I'm going to give her the benefit of the doubt, and I'm willing to take a risk. That's something I've never done before."

Camila stood, putting her hand on Piper's arm. "I'd do the same thing in your position."

"So would I," Layla announced. "If Colton asked, I'd extend my stay."

"Get real; he's not into either of you," Polly replied.

Layla directed her attention towards Polly. "Maybe not, but Alex is into Piper. You have to see that."

Polly let out a long sigh. "I see that she wants Piper to pay attention to her."

"And _I want that_ ," Piper retorted. "I know you're only trying to protect me, and I love you for that." She bent down next to her roommate so they were eye to eye. "But I'm an adult, and I can make decisions on my own without having to consult with you."

Polly covered her hand with her own. "I just don't want you to get burned."

"If I do, that's on me." She shrugged. "But I'll beat myself up over this if I don't stay."

Before she knew it, Polly had her in a deep embrace. "I trust you, Pipes. Just be careful."

"I will." She pulled back. "Now let's enjoy our last bit of wine and each other's company before the night is over."

Camila and Layla raised their glasses. "Here, here!"


	7. Chapter 7

I'd like to thank my beta, Nicki, for always helping me with my stories. I'd also like to thank those of you who've followed or left reviews for this story!

This chapter is rated M for Mature.

* * *

The women finished dinner in the barrel room around 9:30 that night and decided to go back to their rooms to pack for their early afternoon flight out of Seattle. Piper hugged each of them, and they thanked her profusely for putting the whole thing together. Camila and Layla whispered words of encouragement in her ear, but Polly just told her to take care of herself, and she'd see her in three days.

Piper returned to her room to change clothes and pack. A small part of her regretted not spending the final night at the inn, but she was eager to be with Alex and share a bed with her.

She walked down the dirt pathway to Alex's house, noticing that the back door was open and music was flowing out. She smiled and picked up her pace.

"Hello?"

"Come in," Alex called from the kitchen. She'd changed into similar sweats that she'd had on the night before. "How'd it go?"

"Not terrible," Piper admitted. "Camila and Layla were fine, but it took Polly some time."

Alex greeted her with a hug. "You expected that, right?"

She nodded, pulling back enough to kiss her. "She's protective and doesn't want to see me get hurt."

"It's nice to have a person like that in your life." Alex took her hand and led her to the sofa, lowering the volume on Mick Jagger along the way.

"I know. I just wish this nagging, guilty feeling would go away."

"It will." Alex put her arm around her, and Piper scooted into the curve of her body. "I have a surprise for you."

"A surprise?" Piper looked up.

She nodded. "We finished harvesting all the grapes yesterday, and I've asked Felix to run a couple of tests tomorrow so that I can have the day off."

She smiled from ear to ear. "Really?"

"Really." Alex kissed her forehead. "I want to get to know you better, and I don't think that can happen if I'm working all day."

"That's very thoughtful of you," Piper commented, kissing her on the lips. "Thank you."

"But, there's no time like the present." She smiled. "I'll get us something to drink, and I want you to tell me about you and your life."

While Alex poured two after dinner drinks, Piper told her story of growing up in Connecticut, her siblings, her parents and their strained relationship, and going to college at Smith. Alex asked clarifying questions and seemed curious and interested to hear about Young Piper. An hour later, both women were dozing off—her head in Alex's lap.

Alex curled her fingers into blonde hair. "I can't believe I'm about to say this, but I think we should go to sleep."

"And not have sex?" Piper blinked up at her.

"I could easily be persuaded, but I could also get in bed and be asleep in five minutes."

"Agreed." She sat up and rubbed her eyes. "There's always tomorrow."

Alex smiled and led her upstairs, and just as she predicted, both women were dead to the world within minutes of their heads hitting the pillow.

* * *

The next morning, Piper woke up to Alex's head between her legs. It was her first of three orgasms that morning. She was rewarded with one more in the shower as pay back for the morning before. The women ate cereal for breakfast and held hands across the table.

"What do you want to do today?" Alex asked, rubbing the back of Piper's hand with her thumb.

"I don't know—what are my options?"

"We could go for a walk, take a drive, go to a corn field maze, have lunch in Yakima…" She picked up both of their bowls and put them in the dishwasher.

"I'd love to go for a walk, but not at Harlan Hurst where people will probably stop you to ask work questions." Piper finished her coffee and handed the mug to Alex.

"We could go to Horn Rapids Park—it runs along the Yakima River, and there's a walking path around it. I think the loop is just under three miles." She led Piper back upstairs. "And if you want, we could have lunch at Shrub Steppe Smokehouse—they make killer ribs and brew their own beer."

"Sounds good."

The women got dressed and were out the house 15 minutes later having only had one makeout session that nearly led to sex prior to their departure.

* * *

They spent the late morning, walking along the river, holding hands and stealing kisses every few feet. Piper felt completely at ease with Alex by her side, and they never lacked conversational topics. She learned about Alex's plans to go to Washington State University for their Viticulture and Enology program, but her mom passed away, derailing those plans. At that point in her life, Alex didn't think she needed to go to college to study wine—she learned everything she needed to know by observing, pitching in and reading.

At one point during their walk, they went off-trail and ducked into the trees. Just when Alex's hand snaked up Piper's shirt, a Yorkshire Terrier ran towards them, licking their arms until Alex swatted him away. They got a good laugh out of it, and decided to keep their clothes on until they were in the privacy of Alex's truck.

Although no clothing was removed when they returned to the truck, they enjoyed a healthy round of kissing in the parking lot until Piper's stomach growled and Alex insisted that they head to lunch.

The smokehouse and brewery was the perfect outing after a long walk. Alex ordered the ribs and an amber ale and Piper got the barbequed chicken and a grapefruit IPA. Piper filled her in about how she and Polly started the soap business a year ago and how she could work from almost anywhere.

"You should talk to Cecelia about your business skills," Alex offered after wiping thick sauce off her mouth. "She needs someone to help with the inn."

Piper sipped her beer. "Why? It seems like it's functioning fine."

"I'm glad it seems that way." She leaned back. "Colton is sort of in charge of marketing and accounting, but his heart isn't into the inn. He wants to run the tasting room and give tours—anything that lets him interact with the public and talk about wine."

"Doesn't he have a million siblings?" She handed Alex an onion ring. "What about his parents?"

She popped it into her mouth. "He has a sister in high school, and the others moved away and have zero interest in the family business. I think I mentioned his mom is an interior designer, and his dad is a PE teacher and football coach who does woodwork on the side."

"Where does that leave Cecelia?" Piper took another sip of beer.

"Exactly."

She ate one more rib, and Piper watched her mouth surround the bone. Suddenly, she became aroused and her mind jumped to Alex eating _her_ that morning.

"I'm not saying you'd move here permanently to help with the inn, but I'm guessing you could do a lot of work from anywhere there's an Internet connection."

Her thoughts went from sexual to practical. Had Alex just suggested a permanent move to Red Mountain? "Move here _permanently_?"

"No, I'm saying I'm _not_ suggesting that." Alex bounced her leg up and down. "Unless, you know…we get to the point of that becoming a discussion."

Piper's face broke into a wide smile and her heart swelled. "It's not out of the realm of possibility."

"No?" Alex seemed to have been hiding a blush, but it was no use on her alabaster cheeks.

"No."

"I know this is moving fast, Piper, but there's something about you…" She reached for Piper's hand. "And I don't think it's the fact that we met during your vacation, so everything is all rosy or whatever." Her blush spread from her cheeks to her neck. "I like _every fucking thing_ about you."

"That won't always be the case."

"Maybe not, but I'm going to enjoy this honeymoon phase we've got going here." She leaned back again, releasing Piper's hand.

Piper leaned forward. "I like every fucking thing about you, too, including the actual _fucking_."

They laughed and made eyes at each other until the breeze picked up and Piper got cold. Alex paid their tab, and they walked back to the truck. On the drive back to Harlan Hurst, the conversation veered from _their_ relationship to past relationships. Alex confessed that she'd dated another psycho in between things with Erin McAllister, and Piper teased that she must've been attracted to crazy women. (She assured Alex that her pattern wouldn't continue, because _she_ wasn't crazy.) Piper informed her about her two ex-girlfriends and one ex-boyfriend, which led into a discussion about fluid sexuality.

She offered to stop at the grocery store to pick up something to cook at home that evening, and Piper thought it was a fine idea but warned that she was far from a gourmet chef. After having such a big, meaty lunch, they settled on making a butternut squash and sage pizza that Alex would grill.

They weren't two feet in the door before Piper shoved her against the wall, grasping for the hem of her shirt and ripping it over her head.

"Ow! My earring!" Alex laughed, unhooking the shirt from that side of her head. "Better."

Piper'd had bouts of horniness all day, and she'd be damned if she had to wait another five minutes to fuck Alex senselessly. So she did, right there in the entryway of her house.

"That was unexpected," Alex chuckled against her chest.

Piper lifted her head. "Was it really?"

"Yeah," she confirmed. "I mean, I figured we'd have sex later, but I had no idea you were holding that in." She kissed her way down Piper's body, unbuttoning her pants along the way and returned the favor.

When their sexual desire was fulfilled, they showered separately, and then prepped the ingredients for the pizza. Piper washed the arugula and chopped the sage, while Alex cut the squash and stretched out the dough. They talked about destinations they'd always wanted to go, agreeing that if they were together next year, they'd go to Italy on a wine vacation.

Piper scrolled through Alex's iPod while she lit the grill. She had six playlists: mellow, heavy, bedtime, dinner, country and wine. "What's the 'wine' one?"

"A mix of everything except Heavy Metal and New Age," she called from the deck. "Come out here when you're done and bring the wine."

She hit the shuffle button, and Mos Def's _Ms. Fat Booty_ came on. Piper nearly spit out her wine. " _This_ is what you consider wine music?"

"Why not?" She bounced her way over, putting one hand on Piper's shoulder, the other on her ass, and shimmied suggestively until Piper joined in.

Turned out, _Alex could dance_. She moved to the music, dipping and gyrating all in time with the beat, which turned Piper on more than she thought it might. It was no surprise that their bodies melded together as they danced so closely that there was virtually no space between them. Piper flung her arms around Alex's shoulders, and then kissed her way up her neck to her thick lips. They kissed on the deck, hands roaming over each other's body as their dance moves got a little sloppy.

"We could have sex out here, you know." Alex nibbled on her ear. "No one will see us."

She tilted her head, enjoying the feel of Alex's tongue skirting around the shell of her ear. "Is that an invitation?"

She slid her hand into the back of Piper's jeans and grabbed the top of her ass. "Do you need one?"

Piper moaned.

She locked lips with Piper and cupped her breast with the other hand. Alex walked them backwards until Piper's back hit the window with a thud. She unzipped Piper's pants, and the hand that had been on her ass moved to her center, two fingers entering her slick folds. She thrust her digits in and out several times while using her thumb to rub her clit.

"I'm…Alex, I'm… _ohgod_!" The orgasm ripped through her, and her knees gave out.

Alex held her up against the glass with one arm and slowly brought her wet fingers to her own mouth. "You're hot when you cum."

"Mmm," she panted. "I need to sit down." She drug Alex to the lawn furniture and plopped down. "Your fingers should win an award."

"I'll let the Academy know there's a new category for best lesbian fingers." Alex, chuckled, kissing the top of her head. "Stay here; I'm going to get the pizza."

They ate dinner without having to stop in the middle to have sex, and truth be told, Piper was grateful—her pussy was sore from the workout it had been getting over the past 48 hours.

* * *

Alex had to work over the next two days, and Piper helped as best as she could. Much of Alex's work was scientific, and Piper didn't know how to use the equipment or what the results meant. While Alex measured the brix in the grapes one afternoon, Piper had tea with Cecelia, and the conversation shifted to the inn.

"It's hard for me to fathom that none of my grandchildren want to take part in the family business," Cecelia said. "Colton being the exception."

"I don't understand it either," Piper commented around a sip of chamomile. She recalled the conversation she'd had with Alex about Cecelia needing assistance. "I could help if you want. I mean, I'll do what I can to help you drum up business or make sure the website is functioning properly."

She seemed taken aback. "Would you do that?"

"Sure." She shrugged. "I'd do it for free for a set amount of time, maybe three months or something, and if I'm not that big of a help or you don't like what I've done, I'll just stop."

"I highly doubt that would be the case."

Piper set her tea cup back on the saucer. "And if it _does_ work out, we can talk about details at that point."

"Sounds like I'd be getting the better end of that deal," Cecelia commented.

"Tell you what, if you pay for one plane ticket out here in a couple of months, we'll call it good."

She stirred her tea. "That would be mutually beneficial, I suppose—we could look at numbers together, and you could see Alex."

She felt her face heat up but pretended not to follow Cecelia's logic. "Alex?"

"It's pretty obvious, dear." She took a sip, half hiding her grin.

She couldn't hide her blush or her smirk. "Well, I'd still offer to help even if Alex wasn't in the picture." Piper covered Cecelia's hand with her own. "The winery and the inn are magical, and the way tourism is supposedly picking up in the region, you're sure to be a destination for people from all over the country."

"You're very sweet to say so." She squeezed Piper's hand. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have guests arriving any minute and need to make sure the rooms are clean."

She looked puzzled. " _You_ clean the rooms?"

"Not always, but I don't have a regular staff. A few of the vineyard workers step in when they can." She pushed her chair out.

"I can help with that if you want," Piper offered, not _really_ wanting to clean hotel rooms, but feeling like it would be a nice gesture.

Cecelia stood. "I couldn't ask you to do that."

"I insist. Now show me how it's done before I change my mind."

Cecelia allowed her to assist her in cleaning the three dirty rooms, and Piper replaced towels and bath products, empty trash bins, vacuumed and dusted. It wasn't as bad as she thought it might be, and she felt bad that at her age, Cecelia had to do so much manual labor. One of her first items of business would be to convince Cecelia to hire a full-time housekeeper or two.

* * *

Alex and Piper spent their last evening together watching the sunset in the middle of the vineyard, and then heading back to Alex's house to share a special bottle of wine. They talked about plans for Alex to visit her in New York in a couple months and Piper coming back to Harlan Hurst in March. Piper went to sleep with a pang in her chest, and when she awoke the next morning, the dull pain was still there.

"This shouldn't feel so good." Piper sighed into Alex's neck.

"I know. It's ridiculous." She flung her arms around Piper's body, pulling her closer. "But we should probably get up."

"What if we just laid here forever?"

Alex let out a small laugh. "That would be nice."

They remained in bed, holding each other for another five minutes until Piper turned off her phone alarm that she'd pressed snooze on three times.

After showering together and a quick round of wet, needy sex, Alex informed her that they would take a helicopter tour of Red Mountain, and then the chopper would fly them to Seattle in time for her flight. Piper packed her suitcase and took a final spin around the living room before meeting her outside. She'd miss Alex's house perhaps more than the inn or the winery, and she shook her head at the audacity of the way she felt in such a short period of time.

As they drove to the hangar with the windows rolled down, she watched Alex's hair blow in the wind and was struck by how _free_ she seemed. Sure, she spent countless hours tending to grapes and making wine, but she didn't clock in and out at a mundane job—she did what she loved, and that was evident by the way she carried herself. Piper smiled at the fondness that had grown for a woman she'd met a week ago.

She stepped out of the truck and grabbed Piper's suitcase. "Have you ever been in a helicopter?"

"No." She followed Alex into the hangar.

"You're in for a treat." Alex waved at a man in blue overalls.

"Hey, Alex," he called, tucking a rag into his back pocket. "Weather's perfect for a ride over the pass this morning."

"Good." She handed him the suitcase. "Piper, this is Dennis. He operates a crop dusting business in the Yakima Valley and runs helicopter tours on the side."

She shook his hand. "Nice to meet you."

"Pleasure." He removed his cap. "Ya'll ready to get up there?"

A mechanic hopped out of one of the choppers. "She's ready when you are, boss."

Alex helped her into the back seat and jumped in beside her, handing her a headset. Dennis gave them a five-minute safety speech, and then they lifted off. Piper's heart caught in her chest at the exhilaration of flying so low to the ground with the windows open. It felt vastly different than flying in an airplane—almost like she was a bird.

Alex grabbed her hand and narrated their tour of miles and miles of grapevines. From the air, the vineyards looked like a patchwork quilt, and although most of the grapes had already been harvested, the vines still held most of their colorful leaves.

"We're lucky to live in a part of the country where we can grow more than 20 grape varietals and try new ones every year," Alex said through the microphone on the headset. "Each year when we harvest the grapes is like a new beginning. One year, that block over there will produce shitty fruit, and the next year, it might produce the most perfect grapes."

Piper was amazed by how straight the rows were and how each vineyard seemed to train the grapevines to grow in a particular fashion. "How big is the whole area?"

"Red Mountain is the smallest AVA in the state with only 4,000 acres," she said as they flew over a reservoir. "But the Columbia Valley AVA stretches about 20 miles."

"You blink and we're in another AVA," Dennis noted, pointing to what appeared to be a sprawling estate.

"That's two of Ste. Michelle's vineyards down there," she said. "On the left is Horse Heaven and on the right is Canoe Ridge." Alex looked out the other window. "They sold more than 14 million gallons of wine last year."

Piper took it all in, breathing in the chilly air and admiring the terrain beneath her. She had an overwhelming sense of wanting to be there every single day. She wished they were taking the chopper to a vineyard for lunch and a glass of wine rather than on a quick tour of the Columbia Valley and then to the airport, where she'd head back to her life in New York.

She squeezed Piper's hand. "You ok?"

She nodded. "I can see why you love it here."

They spent another 10 minutes flying over vineyards before making the turn westward and heading over the Cascades. No one spoke the majority of the time, unless Dennis or Alex pointed out a landmark below. Piper's stomach started churning as she knew an imminent goodbye was in the future.

As Dennis lowered the chopper to the helipad on the north side of the airport, Alex released her hand and unbuckled her seatbelt.

"We're good," Dennis called, switching a few buttons and tapping gauges. He spoke into his radio to the control tower as Piper stepped down with Alex's assistance.

Piper brushed the hair out of her face, but it was no use with the swirling blades overhead. "That was much faster than I thought it would be."

"Much better than driving, right?" Alex yelled over the roaring engine. "Just follow that yellow line to the bunker over there, and a driver will take you to the main terminal."

She followed the line with her eyes, and then looked away, trying to keep her tears at bay.

"It's just goodbye for a little while." When she felt Alex's hands on her shoulders, Piper looked at her.

"I know." The butterflies in her stomach didn't settle down, and she felt pressure build up in her eyes. She didn't want her voice to crack, so she said as little as possible.

"Meeting you was totally unexpected, Piper." Alex cradled her cheek with one hand. "Thank you for spending time with me."

She tossed her arms around Alex, holding her as close as possible. "Thank you, Alex."

She pulled back and kissed her. "Call me when you land."

Piper nodded and felt a couple of tears roll down her cheeks.

Alex picked up her hand, kissed it, a then laid it over her heart. "And tomorrow, we'll talk dates for my visit to New York."

"Ok." She smiled weakly and craned her neck to kiss Alex one final time.

"Alex, we're cleared for takeoff," Dennis called. "Nice meeting you, Piper. I hope our paths cross again."

She hadn't expected a long goodbye, but this one was shorter than Piper hoped it would be. She thought she should say something else—something laced with a promise, but nothing came out. Instead, she hugged Alex again and watched her climb back into the helicopter.

"Safe travels, babe," Alex called from inside.

She took several steps away from the chopper, and then shielded her eyes against the sun as they lifted off. Piper waved at them until they were out of sight. She took a few deep breaths, wiped her eyes, and then followed the yellow line back to reality, heart hurting with every step.


	8. Chapter 8

I'm going to slap on another M rating for this chapter. I think we have two chapters left before this story is complete. Thank you for the reviews so far!

* * *

Piper's first month back in New York was awful—it was cold and rainy and the traffic seemed worse than ever. _Everything sucked_. She hadn't expected to miss Alex as much as she did; after all, they'd been in each other's company for a week, yet she missed her terribly. Polly wasn't much help—she tried lifting her spirits by keeping busy with work and sharing bottles of Harlan Hurst, but she could tell Polly believed the relationship was a short-lived affair.

They talked or texted twice a day, and as things slowed down at the winery, Alex had more time to communicate. With Piper's assistance, she'd arranged a couple of wine dinners to showcase Harlan Hurst in New York and bought a plane ticket to visit between Christmas and New Year's, and Piper had already started counting down the days.

The only thing that lifted Piper's spirits was that she loved the holidays and spent hours walking around Manhattan, admiring the Christmas lights and decorations. The soap business had picked up as Christmas drew near, and it didn't hurt to be busy, but the more time she spent working for PoPi, the less she could spend helping Cecelia with the inn.

In just a few short months, Piper had overhauled the website, for which Cecelia was grateful, and if she'd stopped there, the inn owner would've been satisfied. However, Piper wanted to do more to promote the property on a national and even international scale, but she couldn't do that and work full-time at PoPi. She spent the next few weeks searching her soul for what she really wanted to do, and by the time Christmas Day rolled around, there wasn't a doubt in her mind what that was.

* * *

The day before Alex's arrival, Piper was a ball of nervous energy. What if Alex's feelings had diminished? What if they weren't as attracted to each other as they had been in Eastern Washington? Perhaps it was the magic of being at a winery in Autumn that made their romance seem more exciting than it really was.

"I'm going to spend the week at Pete's," Polly announced, lugging a suitcase behind her.

Piper stopped dusting. "You don't have to do that."

"It's not completely selfless," she admitted. "I want to see if I could live with him; if this is something we'd consider for the long haul."

She lifted her brows and smiled. "The long haul?"

"Maybe." She wheeled her suitcase to the front door. "If you need anything or if it isn't what you hoped it would be, call me."

"I will." Piper hugged her roommate.

"Have fun."

"Thanks." She smiled and waved as Polly made her way into the cold evening air.

She finished cleaning her apartment, heated a can of chicken noodle soup, and then decided to call Alex to finalize plans for the next day.

"Hey," Alex answered.

"Are you packing?" she asked with a hopeful smile.

She could hear a crunching sound and wondered if Alex was walking in snow. "No, I just finished meeting with Felix."

"Have you started packing yet?" Piper asked, butterflies swarming in her stomach, nervous that Alex had changed her mind. "Your flight leaves early tomorrow morning."

"No," she answered, breathing a little heavy.

"Oh."

Alex let out a small laugh. "I haven't started packing, Pipes, I _finished_."

"Oh," came out as a sigh of relief.

"Did you think I wasn't going to come?" She could almost hear Alex's smirk over the phone.

Piper stopped pacing and sat on the edge of her bed. "The thought might've crossed my mind."

"Not a chance. I can't wait to see you."

Her face cracked open into a wide smile. "Me, too."

They discussed plans for the next day, and Alex told her about the busy day she'd had. It was almost 10 o'clock when they said good night, and Piper went to sleep on a high.

* * *

Piper had never picked up a significant other at the airport until that day, and she wondered if this was how all women felt when they anxiously awaited the arrival of a loved one. She paced in the baggage claim area, wringing her hands together as she scanned the flight arrivals board every couple of minutes. The good news was that Alex's flight was early, so the agony of waiting wouldn't be as long as it could have been.

While she waited, Piper tried picking out the other people in her position, waiting for a girlfriend or boyfriend to arrive, but she didn't get the sense that anyone was as anxious as she was. There was one woman, sitting on a bench and tapping her foot on the ground incessantly—she came the closest to a state of nervous waiting, but five minutes later, an older man arrived, they hugged without much fanfare and went on their way.

A wave of passengers entered the baggage claim area, and Piper searched for a tall woman with jet black hair. Finally, after a boys' basketball team cleared the way, she spotted her.

"Alex!" She raised her hand and bounced on her toes.

Alex strapped a bag across her body and smiled as she picked up her pace.

Piper smiled. "You made it."

"I did." She splayed her hand on the back of Piper's head, pulling her into a deep, unexpected kiss.

Piper moaned into it, and the butterflies in her stomach morphed into a euphoric feeling of desire. Though the kiss didn't last long, all the questions she'd had about if Alex would still be attracted to her were answered in less than a minute.

Alex pulled back, wiping Piper's lip with the pad of her thumb. "If it isn't obvious, I'm happy to see you."

"So am I." She wrapped her fingers loosely around Alex's wrist and smiled. "How was the flight?"

"Cramped." Alex took her hand as they walked to the baggage carousel. "And the guy in front of me had his seat reclined the entire fucking flight."

"I hate when that happens."

She hadn't taken a good look at Alex's full figure until that moment. She had on perfectly fitting jeans and a gray scoop neck sweater and her hair was slightly wavy. Piper took a step closer, holding Alex's hand in both of hers and got a good whiff of the woman next to her. Instantly, she was transported back to the winery. She still smelled earthy yet sweet, and Piper wondered if that was just the scent of Alex Vause rather than a brand of perfume.

"I have two cases of wine," Alex stated, hauling one of the boxes off the belt. "Would you mind getting a cart?"

"Sure."

After retrieving the wine and her suitcase, they made their way to Piper's car and Alex filled her in on the details of the two wine dinners she'd participate in later that week. They got into the car, and as soon as the key was in the ignition, Alex stretched over the armrest and planted another wet kiss on her mouth. Piper leaned into it, placing one hand on Alex's neck, the other on her arm.

"I missed you," Alex mumbled against her lips.

That sent her heart soaring. She smiled against Alex's mouth. "I missed you more."

She felt Alex chuckle as her lips made their way across her cheek. "Is it a competition?"

"No…I'm just saying." Piper tilted her head and shut her eyes, relishing in the feeling of Alex's touch on her blushing skin.

She pulled back, one hand on Piper's cheek, and stared into her eyes. "Drive fast."

Speed limit be damned, Piper made her way out of the parking garage and onto the highway as expeditiously as possible, and Alex's hand never left her body the entirety of the drive. They arrived at her apartment in record time. Although they'd made small talk in the car about what they'd do that week, Piper wouldn't be able to recall with any detail what they'd discussed. She had a one-track mind that involved Alex in her bed.

They unloaded the car, and as soon as the door was shut, Alex pinned her against it. They wasted no time undressing each other, mouths and hands fighting for purchase. Alex was soft and warm and in a way, _luxurious_. She tasted like coffee and vanilla, and if Piper could think of anything other than sex in that moment, she would have wondered if Alex stopped at Starbucks in the airport terminal.

Piper was impressed that they'd made it as far as the sofa before Alex was between her legs, yanking off her carefully chosen underwear. Piper's hands settled on dark hair and her eyes slammed shut—all she could see was stars. As her orgasm approached, she rocked against Alex's mouth as she felt two fingers enter her. That sent her right over the edge, and she came loud and hard into the other woman's mouth.

Alex smirked up at her, chin resting on her pelvic bone, and Piper threw her arm over her forehead and tried to catch her breath.

"Fuck," she panted, finally able to look down at Alex. "Welcome to my apartment."

Alex chuckled. "It's lovely." She crawled up Piper's body, kissing her abdomen, breasts and neck before settling on her mouth. " _You're_ lovely."

Piper had been fairly certain they'd have sex within 24 hours of Alex's arrival, but she would've never guessed it would be the first thing that happened when they walked in the door. Not that she was complaining; in fact, if they never left her apartment in the seven days Alex was in town, she'd be perfectly content.

Instead of giving her a formal tour of the brownstone, Piper proceeded from room to room where they had sex in each one, including the bathroom, for the next hour. They made it to the bedroom, where Alex motioned for her to turn around in the 69 position. Piper had never had sex like that, but after the orgasm that coursed through her at the same time as Alex's, she'd make sure to do it again, perhaps even later that night.

They laid in bed, slowly rubbing each other's bodies, foreheads touching, and Alex smiled tenderly at her.

Piper returned the smile, and her thoughts began racing. Before she could stop herself, she spoke. "I've never had sex like this before."

She laughed, stringing blonde hair behind Piper's ear. "We're definitely sexually compatible."

"Have you been with other women like this?" Piper hadn't wanted to voice that question, yet it tumbled out of her mouth before she could take it back.

Alex flipped onto her back. "Like what?"

"I don't know…" She propped her head in her hand as her elbow bent on the mattress. "This frantically?"

" _Frantic_? Is that what you'd call it?" She turned her head to face Piper. "I think it's more…desperate."

Piper wasn't sure if she liked that word, but she allowed her to continue.

"Not desperate in a bad way," she began, rubbing Piper's thigh. "It's like I can't get enough of you. I want to crawl into your body."

She raised her eyebrows, touched at the sincerity with which Alex spoke.

Alex rolled onto her side until she was able to gently kiss her mouth and flung one leg over Piper's hip. "I've never felt like this."

Her lips turned upwards. "Neither have I."

Alex kissed her nose, and they laid that way until falling asleep until morning.

* * *

The next three days were a whirlwind. Piper took her to all the tourist destinations in Manhattan, including the Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, National September 11 Museum, a Broadway show, and the Museum of Modern Art. They had breakfast in bed, lunch at Carnegie Deli, and dinner at Gramercy Park Tavern. The next night, Alex had to prepare for the wine dinner she'd take part in at an Upper West Side restaurant.

Piper tried on several dresses, giving Alex permission to choose the one she liked best. "How many other winemakers are going to be there?"

"Three of us tonight; four tomorrow." She glanced up from her laptop. "That one makes you look older."

She looked at her reflection in the mirror. "Really?"

Alex shut the laptop. "I liked the green one the most."

"Then, that's the one I'll wear." She hung up the other three dresses she'd tried on. "Are you nervous?"

"Not really," Alex said, flopping onto her back on Piper's bed. "I could talk about our wines in my sleep, so it shouldn't be that bad."

"You'll be great."

She hung her head off the edge of the bed and motioned with one finger. "Come here."

"All the blood is going to rush to your head." Piper, who wore nothing but a bra and underwear, stood in front of her.

She reached for the back of Piper's thighs until her pussy hovered over her face. Alex put her mouth over her center through the underwear, causing Piper's knees to give out, hitting the mattress in front of her. Alex shoved the thin fabric to the side so that her mouth could feast on the delicate pink flesh.

"That feels good." Piper tossed her head back.

Alex's hands journeyed from her thighs to Piper's ass as she pulled her closer, mouth now fully engulfed in Piper's center.

She pulled her neck forward, eyes still shut. "I don't know if I can stay standing."

"Get comfortable, because I have no intention of stopping."

Piper bent at the waist until she was effectively hovering over Alex's body, and as promised, Alex didn't stop. She scooted forward enough to give her neck some support, but her tongue never left Piper's pussy. Piper's head hung down, and she realized she was directly over Alex's center. She balanced on one hand as she unzipped Alex's jeans and pulled them down enough to access her most intimate spot. Alex moaned into her as Piper slipped her tongue into her wet center, and the blonde grinned at what she could do to her. She lowered herself even more, until her arms wrapped around Alex's thighs, and they ate each other until Piper came, and not long after, Alex followed.

* * *

The time they spent in bed was costly—they had less than 30 minutes to shower, dress and get to the restaurant, and Piper was doubtful they'd make it in time. They'd planned to take the Subway, but with the clock ticking, Piper requested an Uber so they could make up some time.

"How would we have carried this case of wine on the Subway?" she asked, taking long strides to keep up with Alex.

She adjusted the box against her body. "I would've figured something out."

"We're only 10 minutes late." Piper glanced at her watch. "Not bad."

"Do I look ok?" Alex smacked her lips together, smoothing out her lipstick. "Or do I look like I was just fucking my girlfriend less than an hour ago?"

The word _girlfriend_ resonated like an echo in a hollow room, and Piper couldn't hide her smile. Before she could comment, a man in a suit opened the restaurant door.

"I was beginning to think you weren't going to show up." He took the case of wine from her.

"Sorry, traffic," Alex lied.

"We're going to have to hustle." The man walked towards the kitchen, and Alex followed, but not before squeezing Piper's hand, promising to catch up with her later.

Piper gave her name to the hostess and was escorted to a private dining room that was already filled with about 20 people. Although the servers wore pressed white shirts and black pants or skirts, she thought the restaurant would be more formal than it was. There were no tablecloths and the menu featured a range of gourmet burgers and sandwiches. Piper wondered if Alex knew that they were not at a fine dining establishment and worried that her presentation would be too sophisticated for the ambiance.

When Alex entered the dining room with the two other winemakers, Piper walked over to her. "Have you seen the menu?"

Alex smiled at the guests. "Just did."

Piper creased her brow. "What are you going to do?"

She put her hand over Piper's. "Make adjustments."

And Alex did just that. She'd brought a mixed case of wine to the restaurant and described their most inexpensive red blend to the patrons as two servers filled their glasses. Piper had almost forgotten how eloquently Alex spoke about wine, and within seconds, the guests seemed to hang on every word she said.

The dinner was enjoyable, but Alex was busy talking to the diners while Piper ate a blue cheese burger and sweet potato fries. She hadn't expected to get Alex's undivided attention, but she longed for more than what she could give.

After dinner and on their walk to the Subway station, Piper asked about her research on these restaurants, and Alex confessed that she'd been too busy or pre-occupied to worry about who was agreeing to host her. Nevertheless, she was pleased that she'd sold the remaining bottles of wine and had all but two of the guests sign up to be on the winery's electronic newsletter. (Something Piper had strung together over the past couple of months.)

As soon as they arrived at Piper's apartment, Alex opened her laptop and searched for the restaurant where she'd pour the following evening. "Have you heard of Craft?"

"That's Tom Colicchio's restaurant." She peeked around the closet door after taking off her dress. "You know, the guy from _Top Chef_."

Alex kicked off her shoes. "Is that a movie or something?"

"It's a cooking reality show." She changed into a skimpy tank top and pink pajama bottoms. "All these chefs from around the country compete to see which one makes the best food out of weird ingredients or crazy circumstances, and Tom Colicchio is the head judge."

She kissed Piper's shoulder on the way to the bathroom. "Well, that's where the wine dinner will be tomorrow night."

"Are you serious?"

"Very." Alex removed her glasses and washed her face.

"That's going to be a vastly different experience than tonight." She dabbed toothpaste on both of their brushes. "Are you sure it's ok if I tag along?"

"You're not tagging along." Alex dried her face. "You're my guest."

"Thank you." Piper wet her toothbrush and stuck it into her mouth as she contemplated how to broach the subject of what Alex had called her earlier that evening.

After their nighttime routine, which felt far more domestic than Piper ever dreamed, she crawled into bed and waited for Alex to get in behind her as they'd done each night.

Two minutes later, she felt the bed dip and Alex's arm over her hip. The only time Alex smelled different was when she got into bed—she smelled like Olay face lotion and minty toothpaste instead of her usual earthy, sweet smell.

"Do you remember what you called me before we walked into the restaurant tonight?" Piper tried, linking their fingers together.

"What I called you?" Alex's tone was laced with confusion, and Piper knew she'd have to work for this one.

She twisted her body until she was halfway on her back. "It was a term of affection."

"Was it _babe_?" The light was barely bright enough to see Alex's face, and she looked perplexed. "I've called you that before."

"No, not that."

Alex rolled fully onto her back, causing their joined hands to cross Piper's body. "I have no idea."

She paused, hoping Alex would get it before she'd have to be completely transparent, but nothing was forthcoming. "You called me your girlfriend."

Alex furrowed her brow. "I did?"

She nodded, concerned that the term meant nothing—maybe it was just something Alex had said as they rushed to get to the wine dinner.

"Oh." Alex turned her head on the pillow, unhooked their hands and reached for Piper's cheek. "Did that freak you out?"

"No."

"Is this going to be 20 questions, Pipes, until I figure out what you want me to say?" she chuckled.

Piper figured her face was plastered with disappointment.

"It just slipped out," Alex replied, hand falling from her cheek.

"So, it's something I should ignore? Pretend I never heard it?"

"That's how I think of you," Alex said matter-of-factly. "I guess I've just never said it out loud or asked if that's how you think of us."

Piper's face lit up. " _Girlfriends_?"

"Yeah," she said with a sweet laugh.

She toyed with a strand of Alex's hair. "That's how you think of me?"

"Yes." She grabbed her by the wrist, bringing Piper's palm to her mouth and kissing it. "Does that make you happy?"

Piper nodded and leaned over to kiss her. "Exceedingly."

They made love more tenderly that night than they had in their past sexual encounters, and Piper was overjoyed that they were officially a couple.

* * *

The wine dinner at Craft was not at all like the one the previous night—guests were dressed in suits & dresses and the menu featured escargot, foie gras and Wagyu rib eyes. The other three winemakers were serving wines that retailed for more than $80 per bottle, and Alex had was glad she'd brought the more expensive case of Syrah and Merlot to that dinner.

Piper ended up sitting across from a lesbian couple who owned the yoga studio she belonged to, so she was perfectly content to not garner Alex's undivided attention as she tended to the other guests. The wine flowed freely as she enjoyed the four-course meal, and by the time dessert arrived, Piper was more than a little tipsy.

Having finished their meal, guests mingled around the room, and Piper took that opportunity to find Alex. She tried not to swish her wine as she walked across the room, but as careful as she was, a splash jumped out of her glass and landed on her shoe.

"Oops," she announced, wrapping an arm around Alex's neck.

"Spilled a little?" Alex chuckled and put her arm around her waist. "This is my girlfriend, Piper Chapman."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Ben Pendelton from Gotham Wines." The man Alex had been talking to reached out to shake Piper's hand.

"I don't usually get this drunk on wine," she hiccupped and covered her mouth. "It's just so good… _your_ wine especially…not better than my girlfriend's, but still."

"Thanks, and don't worry about it—my wife gets pretty intoxicated at these things too, which is why she's not here tonight."

Piper leaned closer, thinking she was right next to Alex's ear, but she was still several inches away. "I'm so wet for you, Al."

"Maybe we should leave," Alex suggested, squeezing her waist. "Would that be alright?" She removed the glass from Piper's hand. "Sorry, Ben. I'll be in touch early next week about our conversation."

"No worries. Nice to meet you." He took the mostly empty glass from Alex. "I'll take care of this."

"Ok, babe. We're out of here."

Piper didn't remember the walk to the Subway, but as the train lurched forward, her stomach did as well.

Alex rubbed her back. "You ok?"

"I don't feel so good." She blinked up at her. "I think I'm going to be sick."

"Can you make it one more stop?"

Piper shook her head.

She grabbed Piper's hand, pulled her to her feet and got off the Subway at the next stop. Ten feet later, Piper wretched her guts out and felt Alex holding her hair back.

She closed her eyes and put her hands on her knees. "Did you hold Erin McAllister's hair back while she puked?"

"Can't say that I did." She made long strokes on Piper's back. "Are you ok?"

She slowly stood to an upright position. "Yeah, I think so."

She found a napkin in her purse and wiped Piper's mouth. "Should we get back on the Subway, or do you think you can make it five or six blocks to your house?"

Piper reached for her. "Carry me."

"I'm not going to carry you," she laughed. "Boy, how did I miss you getting this drunk?" She led Piper up the stairs of the Subway station into the frigid night air.

"I was overserved." She could feel herself swaying with every step, but her stomach felt better.

"It had nothing to do with you asking the waiter to fill your glass?" Alex entwined their fingers.

She shook her head. "They just kept pouring and pouring. I didn't even ask for more."

"Next time, just say no."

"Like Nancy Reagan?" she hiccupped.

"Just like Nancy Reagan," Alex giggled.

They walked back to Piper's brownstone, and Alex helped an intoxicated Piper undress and brush her teeth.

"Drink this." Alex held a glass of water to her mouth. "And take two Aleve. It'll make you feel better in the morning."

She swallowed the pills and downed the entire glass of water. "You don't want to have sex tonight?"

Alex laughed. "Not tonight, no."

"Oooook." She flung her arms around Alex's neck and kissed her firmly on the mouth. "Let's go to bed."

"Good idea."

* * *

The next morning, Piper woke up feeling like something had crapped in her mouth. _What the fuck_? She tried swallowing, but her mouth was too dry. "Al?"

No answer.

"Alex?" Piper rolled over and felt the spot next to her. It was cool to the touch, indicating that Alex had been awake for at least a few minutes.

"Morning." Alex appeared in the doorway, coffee mug in hand. "Slept well?"

She flung an arm over her eyes. "My mouth is so dry…I can't even swallow."

She left, returning a minute later with a bottle of Gatorade. "Here."

She took five swigs and wiped the dribble off her chin. "Thanks…What happened last night?"

"You don't remember?" She sat on the edge of the bed and brushed Piper's hair off her forehead.

She blinked several times. "I got drunk… _really_ drunk."

"You did." Alex smiled.

She put a hand on Alex's thigh as it all came back to her. "I puked in the Subway station; you held my hair back."

"Yeah."

"Are you upset with me?"

"Of course not." Alex rubbed her arm. "Why would I be?"

Piper sat up. "Because I made an ass of myself at your dinner."

"You didn't make an ass of yourself, babe." She kissed her nose. "You said something inappropriate to me with one of the other winemakers present, but you thought you were whispering."

"Oh, God." She covered her face. "What did I say?"

Alex couldn't keep a straight face. "That I made you wet."

"Noooo. No, no, no!"

She removed Piper's hands from her face, and then kissed her on the lips. "Under normal circumstances, that would've turned me on, but not with you being as wasted as you were."

"Ugh, I have to call him and apologize." She reached for her phone, but Alex thrust her back, pinning her to the bed.

"No, you don't." She lifted a suggestive eyebrow. "The only thing you have to do is show me how wet I made you."

With her hands still pinned to the mattress, Piper lifted her head up as high as she could to kiss Alex. "I can definitely do that."

They spent the rest of the day at Piper's place, watching old movies, listening to music, lounging in bed and having sex. As Piper drifted off to sleep early that evening, she remembered that Alex's flight was the next day. She didn't mention anything for fear of becoming a sentimental, blubbering mess, but as she slept that night, she never let go of the woman next to her.

* * *

The next day, Piper was a wreck. They stayed in for breakfast and left for the airport just after 11 a.m. for Alex's early afternoon flight. They discussed Piper's visit to Washington in March as something to look forward to, but it did nothing to cheer her up. She'd gotten used to waking up and going to sleep with Alex, and she wanted that sense of warmth and love every day.

Their goodbye was messy, and it was Alex who finally pulled the plug as she made her way to the security line without looking back. Piper sat in her car for ten minutes and wept, chastising herself for being so emotional. Although formal words were never exchanged, Piper had fallen in love with Alex, and letting her go was excruciating.


	9. Chapter 9

After nearly two months of being away from Alex, Piper couldn't wait to board the plane in late March to spend a week with her in Washington.

Although she had originally intended to spend more than a week there, the pending sale of PoPi required her presence in Manhattan the first week of April. She and Polly initially had no intention of selling their soap company, but Christmas sales had been through the roof, and they couldn't keep up with production. Either they'd need to hire a staff and rent a massive facility or turn the helm over to an established company. Piper did much of the research to determine which companies they'd like to sell to, which kept her mind occupied during the two months when Alex was across the country. The final details of the sale weren't completely ironed out by the time Piper's trip rolled around, which was why she'd need to return to New York quicker than she would have liked.

She and Alex had decided to spend two nights in Seattle, and then make their way over the Snoqualmie Pass to eastern Washington. Alex enjoyed visiting Seattle and admitted she didn't get to spend as much time there as she would've liked since Felix had retired. She was looking forward to their stay almost as much as Piper was.

Their greeting at Sea Tac was similar to the one at JFK when Alex visited in January. The only difference this time was that instead of waiting to have sex when they were behind closed doors, they used the back seat of Alex's rental car creatively while they were still parked in the off-site garage.

Variations of _I missed you so much_ were peppered throughout their physical encounter as if what they were doing couldn't possibly prove that they missed each other beyond what words could offer. It didn't take long for both women to be satisfied, and within 30 minutes, they were on I-5 heading to the city.

She rubbed Alex's jean-clad thigh. "Don't you think I've waited long enough to hear where we're staying or the sites we'll see?"

Alex smiled. "You'll find out soon."

They pulled into the U-shaped driveway at the Seattle Marriott Waterfront, and Piper couldn't wait to check out the view. The hotel was situated directly on Elliott Bay, and their room overlooked the water as well as the Great Wheel and buildings lining the waterfront.

"This is stunning," she commented as Alex wrapped her arms around her from behind.

"I'm lucky to have a view of vineyards every day, but I never get to see the water." She kissed Piper on the neck. "I forgot how beautiful it is."

Piper turned in her arms. "Can we go on a boat or something—take advantage of being on the water?"

"Yeah, we can do that." She kissed Piper on the lips, which led to more civilized sex in their king-sized bed.

It was late in the evening by the time they were motivated enough to stop touching each other's naked bodies, and Alex decided they'd walk around downtown so that Piper could get her bearings, and they'd have dinner at The Metropolitan Grill, a renowned Seattle steakhouse.

The couple had spoken on the phone daily, sometimes twice a day, during the months when they were apart, yet when they were together, there still seemed to be topics to discuss. There was never a lull in conversation, which further proved to Piper that this was the woman with whom she wanted to spend her life. She'd never said as much to Alex, nor had they exchanged _those three little words_. Piper wondered who would say them first, but she was certain it would happen during her stay in Washington.

The next morning, they strolled around Pike Place Market, had coffee at the original Starbucks, and ate street food until they were stuffed. They held hands and stole kisses throughout the day, and Piper was in a state of bliss as she experienced a somewhat "normal" life with Alex.

Alex seemed to be having an equally enjoyable time, especially when they took the ferry to Bainbridge Island. They were fortunate to have a relatively clear (but drizzly) day in Seattle, and as the large vessel heaved its way across the water, they took in the view of Mount Rainier and the Seattle skyline. The intermittent rain didn't stop them from exploring the boutiques on Bainbridge and having a late lunch on a heated patio at one of the restaurants that happened to serve Harlan Hurst wines.

"How many restaurants in Seattle serve your wine?" Piper asked around a bite of salmon.

"I think we're up to 15, thanks to you." Alex stabbed a roasted potato and popped it into her mouth.

She shooed the compliment away with the flick of her wrist. "That was nothing."

"Nothing?" She set her fork down. "Before you started working with Cecelia, we had no formalized process for distribution."

That much was true—in the fall, Piper had begun volunteering to help Cecilia with the inn, but the more she got to know Alex, the more she realized there were critical components of the winery that had been left unattended. (Alex had told her that since Harlan's death, and even months before when his health declined, no one had paid attention to the _business_ of the winery. Alex was still making excellent wine for the label, and they were selling it to their pre-established client list and in select wine shops in the Pacific Northwest, but the winery was static in terms of growth.) That winter, Piper had created a monthly e-newsletter, designed an online ordering form to get Harlan Hurst wines delivered to customer's doorsteps, and created a fact-sheet for restaurants who were considering serving Harlan Hurst wines. She even fielded a few phone calls from restaurant owners and bar managers who were curious about their wines.

"I'm happy to help," Piper replied, sipping a light-bodied red that Alex had selected to compliment the salmon.

Alex grabbed her right hand across the table, forcing Piper to set down her fork. "Since you're selling the soap company and you seem interested in the wine business, how would you feel about taking a job—a _real_ job—at the winery?"

Piper's eyes shot open. " _At_ or _with_?"

She creased her brow. "Is there a difference?"

"A job _at_ Harlan Hurst implies that I would physically be at the winery," Piper began. "A job _with_ Harlan Hurst suggests that I could work anywhere."

She rubbed the pad of her thumb across the back of Piper's hand. "Which would you prefer?"

"Which would _you_ prefer?" Piper could feel her pulse quicken as the conversation progressed.

"I asked you first."

"I haven't really thought about it," Piper answered. And she hadn't. Sure, she'd thought about what it would be like to live near or, God willing, _with_ Alex, but she hadn't let her mind go too far down that path for fear of disappointment. "I mean, I'd love to be closer to you, and working at Harlan Hurst would be a dream come true, but…"

Alex shook her head. "But what?"

"I'd be making a major life change, Alex." She leaned forward. "Not just professionally, but personally."

She shrugged as if that was understood. "Yeah?"

"We haven't even said we love each other—don't you think that should come first?" She hadn't meant to mention _The L Word_ , yet it stumbled out of her mouth like a drunk man walking on a cobblestone street.

Alex released her hand and stared at her as if she was speaking another language. "Is that what you're worried about—that we haven't said we love each other?"

Piper looked away and wondered if she'd gone too far. She heard a chair screech against the wooden deck and looked up: Alex was standing.

She walked around the table and squatted in front of Piper, putting her hands on Piper's thighs and swiveling Piper's body until she was fully facing her. She took in a deep breath. "Piper Chapman, I love you," she stated plainly. "It might seem like I'm bullshitting you, but I've loved you since the first time we met. My feelings have obviously evolved since then, and now I can say with complete certainty that I love every fucking thing about you, even your useless trivia and incessant need to help people when you think you can make things better."

Tears pooled in Piper's eyes as she listened to Alex's speech.

"I don't want to travel cross-country every couple of months to see each other, and I don't think this will come as a shock to you, but I can't move to New York." Alex squeezed her thighs. "I want you to move here—to live with me—because that's what couples in love do. That's what _I_ want to do."

Piper brought the napkin to her face and wiped her free-flowing tears.

"Second to loving you and all, I want you to work with me; to manage the business side of the winery, which you've already proven you can do from 3,000 miles away. Imagine what you could do if you were there, day in and day out." Alex blinked up at her, and then grimaced. "My legs are fucking killing me."

Piper snorted messily and pulled her into a deep embrace. "I love you, too."

"I never questioned that," she pulled back, hands on Piper's cheeks, and smiled. "but you're right, it _is_ nice to hear."

Piper sniffed. "I'd love to work at Harlan Hurst, but there are a few details I need to work out in New York before I can commit."

Alex wiped her tears away, scooted a chair closer and sat down. "That's fair."

Piper reached for her hand. "But I _do_ want to live with you."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." Piper nodded.

The 10 or so other people in the restaurant started clapping.

"They probably think we just got engaged," Piper noted.

"That's next." Alex pulled back and kissed her softly on the lips. "For now, we have a lot to celebrate."

"We do." She returned the kiss a bit more intimately than was appropriate for the public place, but Piper didn't care. She was in love, and her life was about to change.

* * *

They took the ferry from Bainbridge back to Seattle, and then took a taxi back to the hotel to celebrate their declarations of love. At one point that night, Alex commented how cheesy they were, but Piper went down on her, and she took back any snarky comments she'd previously made.

The next morning, they headed to Capitol Hill and explored the trendy neighborhood. They ate breakfast at Crumble & Flake, spent two hours at Elliott Bay Book Company, and had lunch at Oddfellows. Piper was amazed by the number of gay couples she saw, expressing their affection in one way or another on the streets. Manhattan had no shortage of gay people, but everyone seemed in a rush there—in Seattle, people seemed to enjoy simply spending time together.

"I wish we had more time here," Piper commented as they got in the car to head across the Pass.

"When you move here, I promise to take you to Seattle at least once a month." Alex squeezed her hand as she made her way onto I-90. "Except during harvest—I can't really leave then."

"I wouldn't want to leave Red Mountain in the fall."

Alex smiled.

They listened to KEXP as they drove the three hours to Red Mountain, stopping every 50 miles or so to use the bathroom and steal a few kisses.

"How do you want to tell Cecelia about us?" Piper asked when the radio station was no longer available.

"Do you really think she doesn't know?" Alex chuckled.

"Does she?" Piper knew that Cecelia was aware of their budding relationship, but she didn't know if the older women understood how serious they were.

"Of course she does," she replied, still grinning. "Cecelia is like a mother to me—at least she has been since my mom died."

"Does she know you want me to work at the winery?"

Alex turned down a two-lane road. "I'm the one who suggested it, but she was all over it when she realized it was a possibility."

Piper grinned. "Really?"

"Oh, come on! You know she loves you." Alex laughed. "Not as much as I do, but still."

She kissed the back of Alex's hand. "That's nice to hear."

Less than an hour later, they arrived at Harlan Hurst, and Piper got out of the car and took a deep breath of the once familiar, sweet air.

"I love it here."

"Good." Alex leaned over, kissing her cheek, before opening the trunk to get Piper's suitcase. "We can go to the inn for dinner if you want."

"I'd love that." She grabbed her carry-on bag and followed Alex into her house.

Piper walked around the space with a fond smile, remembering the first time she'd stepped foot in the house. She had a hard time imagining that _would soon be her house_ , too, but she welcomed the thought as Alex escorted her to the bedroom.

Surprisingly, they didn't have sex before heading to the inn. They kissed, and Piper couldn't help putting her hands on Alex's breasts, but they didn't get naked. As they walked to the inn, they laughed about that having been the first time they resisted having sex.

"Are we already becoming an old, lesbian couple?" Alex asked, entwining their fingers as they walked through the vines.

"Never." She grabbed Alex's ass. "I'll prove it right here if you want."

Alex chuckled and pushed her glasses higher on her nose. "I'll take a raincheck."

* * *

When Cecelia saw Piper enter the inn, she clasped her hands together and all but ran towards her. "Piper, how good to see you!"

She threw her arms around the older woman. "You, too."

"I'm hoping Alex presented you with a certain employment option," she said not so coyly.

"She did." Piper tucked her hair behind her ear. "I have some things to work out back in New York, but I would _love_ to work here and continue the legacy your husband left."

Cecelia hugged Piper for the second time. "That's the best news I've had in a long time."

Piper had no idea how much Cecelia had depended on her to run the inn and help with the winery, but the older woman told her in no uncertain terms how valuable she'd become to the Harlan Hurst estate in just a few months.

The three of them, plus Colton, enjoyed dinner together as they made plans for Piper's eminent move. Although it wasn't a formal meeting, they discussed big-picture stuff until the conversation turned to Colton's ongoing conversations with Layla. Piper was surprised to hear that they'd continued to communicate through texts and social media, and Layla was planning a visit to the winery that summer.

"I don't have time for a girlfriend, so don't let your mind go down that road," he said through a big smile. "But I like Layla, and I'm happy to welcome her back to the winery in June."

"What about Camila?" Piper asked, grabbing Alex's hand under the table. (It had rested on Piper's leg throughout dinner.)

"She's an incredible woman, but a little too old for me."

"Older women," Piper fake sighed.

Alex checked her in the ribs. "You're like three years younger than me!"

"Still." She shrugged. "You're older. It's _much_ more complicated."

Alex rolled her eyes, and Piper let out an obnoxious snort. She leaned over, planting a kiss on the spot where Alex's neck met her chest.

"We're going to get out of here," Alex announced, wiping her mouth and standing.

Cecelia hugged Piper one more time. "I hope you enjoyed dinner."

"I did, thank you so much."

The women departed, stopping in the middle of the dark vineyard to makeout against a row of budding Chardonnay grapes. As she lifted Piper's shirt and fumbled with her breasts, Piper protested, saying it was too cold for sex in the middle of the field. Alex grabbed her hand, towing her back to her house at a near running speed. Once they were safely inside, she ravaged Piper's body much like the time months earlier when their sexual desire was only beginning to blossom.

* * *

The next day, Piper joined Alex in the lab as they tested a few of the Chardonnay buds. Alex explained she'd need to do some pruning with Santiago and Miguel that afternoon, so she should feel free to talk business with Cecelia.

Piper did just that, and she and Cecelia enjoyed egg salad sandwiches in the kitchen at the inn while talking about the future of the estate. Piper listed five new ideas right off the bat, and Cecelia liked all but one. They discussed broadening distribution, running print ads in magazines, and possibly starting a quarterly dinner series in the barrel room. Harlan Hurst didn't have a wine club, which Piper thought was ludicrous, so she promised to put something together by the end of April so that it would be fully functional by their Spring Release.

She left the meeting on a high—Alex had been right, there was a lot to be done there, and Piper could be instrumental in bringing both the winery and the inn the attention it deserved.

The week flew by, and before she knew it, Piper had to get on a plane back to New York to deal with the sale of her company. She'd also have to inform Polly about her cross-country move, but that would likely be easier since she was married and already trying to get pregnant.

She and Alex agreed that if things went smoothly all around, Piper would move to eastern Washington by early May just in time for their Spring Release party. Although saying goodbye was difficult, this one was had the promise of a more certain future, and Piper held onto that as she bid her lover farewell.


	10. Chapter 10

The sale of PoPi went off without a hitch, and Piper left New York with a decent chunk of change. She thought she'd be more nervous about the move than she was, but all signs pointed to her and Alex having a long-lasting relationship, which set her mind at ease tremendously. Polly had given her a hard time at first, but even she saw proof of Alex's commitment to her best friend and couldn't deny that their relationship "had legs."

Piper didn't have any furniture worth taking cross country, so she shipped four boxes of seasonal clothing and sentimental belongings to Washington, taking only two suitcases on the plane on the one-way trip. Instead of flying into Seattle like she had before, she flew into the Yakima regional airport, which was a far easier pick-up for Alex.

"I didn't think this day would ever come," she said as Alex lifted her off the ground in a firm embrace.

"I know." She kissed Piper's forehead before putting her down and giving her a more proper kiss on the mouth. "I've been dying to say this: welcome home."

Piper's face lit up at the realization that she was, in fact, _home_.

They drove the quick 30 minutes back to the winery, never letting go of each other's hands. Piper enquired about past Spring Release parties, knowing she would be spearheading this one. Alex was excited to have her on board to iron out the details of the special event, and Colton was more than happy to give Piper the reins.

They had sex as soon as they walked into Alex's house, but this time, they made it to the bedroom before undressing. As they lay in the rumpled bed sheets, Alex tucked a strand of hair behind Piper's ear.

"I was thinking of converting the guest bedroom into an office," she said out of the blue.

Piper didn't mind that the conversation took a more practical turn; after all, they'd declared their love several times during love making.

"What if we have friends who want to stay here?"

"I don't have friends who'd want to stay here," Alex chuckled. "Your friends could always stay at the inn."

"True…" Piper rolled onto her back, tugging Alex's hand across her stomach.

"I sense a 'but' coming."

"I don't want to be confined to this house all day." She turned her head on the pillow to face Alex. "It's beautiful and the light is great, but I'd feel claustrophobic if I spent pretty much 24 hours in the same space."

"I get that." It was Alex's turn to roll onto her back, head still facing Piper. "My office in the wine facility is a decent size. I could probably move another desk in there for you."

"How often do you actually use your office?"

She shrugged. "A couple hours a day—30 minutes here, an hour there."

Piper turned on her side, running a hand through black hair. "I don't know if we'll even need two desks. When you need that space, I'm sure I could find somewhere else to work, or I could take a walk or something."

"There are lots of quiet places to work in the inn, too." She rubbed Piper's hip. "I'm confident Cecelia wouldn't mind if you posted in the lobby or even in the tasting room."

Piper smiled. "Then it's settled—the guest room remains."

"Have you even looked at that room?" Alex kissed her knuckles.

"I peeked inside last time I was here—lots of boxes."

"Yeah, I haven't really done much with the space other than store shit that I didn't feel like moving to the attic." She crawled out of bed and headed into the bathroom.

"Maybe I could spruce it up a bit?" Piper was quick on her heels. "It would feel good to put my touch on a part of your house. Not that you haven't done a brilliant job."

Alex washed her face, and then looked into Piper's eyes. "It's our house now, and you're welcome to put any special Piper touches on it that you want."

"Really?"

"Yeah." She kissed her on the temple. "I can only imagine what it would feel like to move into a house that's already established or whatever. I know it'll take time, but I want you to eventually think of this as _our_ house—not mine."

Piper was touched by her sentiment. She had been somewhat concerned about how Alex would feel about a second person moving into the place she once shared with her mom, but Alex seemed eager to make a home with her.

"It _will_ take some time, but I'd like that." Piper smiled, dragging her lover back to the bed for another round of sex.

* * *

Over the next week, Piper met with several workers at the winery, most of whom had assisted in one way or another since childhood. The workers' English was far superior to her rusty Spanish, though she was certain her language skills would improve the longer she worked there. Piper wanted to get to know the wine making process inside and out—more than what she'd learned during her vacation back in October. While she'd taken in a great deal about wine back then, there were details she uncovered now that the casual wine enthusiast would know nothing about. Some of them were critical to making wine, and either Alex thought she already knew those details, or they were second nature enough for to her not to mention them.

Piper also met with Cecelia for a couple of hours each day to discuss the finer points of operating the inn. They looked at Harlan's old spreadsheets that he'd kept over the years, all of which were written in pencil in spiral-bound notebooks. Fortunately, his penmanship was decent and his math skills were accurate; trouble was, he used abbreviations all too often, and Cecelia and Piper had to guess what many of them meant. She had her work cut out for her during the slower months when she'd input Harlan's figures into Excel to make it easier to see the financial progress the winery and inn had made over the course of ten plus years.

Although Colton was thrilled to not have to plan Harlan Hurst's special events now that Piper was on board, he still had to meet with her several times about the Spring Release event so that she could get it right. To his credit, Colton was good at party planning, and he'd kept his notes fairly organized in an electronic file. That made life a bit easier for Piper this go-round, though she would eventually do her own research on table/chair rental companies, caterers and florists when she got the hang of things.

* * *

During her first week at the estate, Piper worked 10-hour days, but that was nothing compared to Alex, who was on pace to put in an 80-hour work week. There were two days when they didn't see each other until well after dinner time, and the night before the Spring Release, she didn't see Alex until she went searching for her long after the sun had set.

"Alex?" She entered the wine making facility and looked around the vast room. "Al, are you in here?"

Pink Floyd was blasting through the speakers as she walked to the other wing, where she saw Alex standing at a table with a case of wine in front of her.

"There you are."

"You scared me." Alex pulled a bottle out.

She trailed a hand down her back. "If someone wanted to rob the place, they'd have no problem."

Alex ignored her statement as she began scratching at the label.

She turned around, butt resting against the table where Alex was working. "What are you doing?"

"The labels are all fucked up." She held the bottle out for Piper to see.

"They're barely crooked." She took the bottle. "Unless someone is examining the label, they're not going to notice."

"The label is the _first_ thing people notice." Alex grabbed the bottle again and began peeling the sticker back. "I don't want to be perceived as a cheap-ass wine company."

"You think that's what people will remember about your wine?" Piper asked. "That the label was a little askew?"

Alex didn't respond immediately as she worked on the edge of the label with her already shredded fingernails. "It's not good enough."

"Fine." Piper shrugged. "If it means that much to you, we'll get a crew in here first thing tomorrow and re-label the fucked up bottles." She peered into another open case. "How many do you think are affected?"

"I don't know," she sighed. "This is the first case I opened. Could be all of them."

"It could also be just this one." Piper pulled out two bottles of Chardonnay. "These two are fine."

Alex glanced her way.

"So are these, and these." She set them back in the box, and then examined the next case. "These all seem perfect, too."

Alex threw her head back and shut her eyes.

"Are you worried about tomorrow?" Piper tugged her closer by the wrist until Alex stood directly in front of her. "Is that what this is about?"

"Maybe." She released one of Piper's hands and rubbed her eyes beneath her glasses. "I hate when we host big events. I'm fine when I have to talk about our wines at other places, but for some reason, when we're here, I get all…" she trailed off with a shrug and a head-shake.

Piper remembered how stressed out Alex seemed in the fall when all the volunteers showed up at Harlan Hurst for Crush, but back then, she was only getting to know Alex. Now that she had more intimate knowledge of the winemaker, Piper could sense her anxiety better.

"Your wines are flawless, Al." She lifted Alex's chin until their eyes met. "If anything goes wrong, I'll fix it. If you're worried about what a crooked label says about the winery, I'll go through every last one of these cases to make sure they're all straight."

Alex let out a short huff. "Am I being ridiculous?"

"A little." She shrugged. "But I love how important Harlan Hurst's reputation is to you."

Alex rested her forehead against Piper's and inhaled deeply, followed by a slow exhale.

"I have a plan for the labels, and I promise not to let a single bottle leave the premises without ensuring that the fucking label is on correctly."

That earned her a laugh, followed by a kiss. "Thank you," she whispered. "I'm glad you're here. Not just now, though having you here at this moment is kind of nice."

"Only _kind of_ nice?" Piper gave her an affectionate smile. "It's getting late, and you probably haven't eaten anything since breakfast." She grabbed Alex's hand and walked towards the exit.

"I had an apple around two o'clock," she retorted as if that should earn her praise. "Maybe it was closer to three."

"Well, you're going to have homemade tortellini and sausage soup when we get home." Piper turned off the lights.

Alex shut and locked the door. "Who made it?"

"I did," Piper proudly stated.

She stopped in her tracks. "You made soup? I thought you didn't cook?"

"Cecelia gave me a recipe that calls for literally six ingredients. I dumped them into the Crockpot I found in the back of your kitchen cabinet before I left this morning." She began walking, pulling Alex's hand to join her. "It should be hot and delicious."

" _You're_ hot and delicious." Alex tugged on her hand until Piper was forced back. She greedily kissed her, putting her hands on both cheeks.

She wiped Alex's lip with the pad of her thumb. "What was that for?"

"For taking care of me…and I don't mean in a motherly sort of way."

She smiled. "In a _girlfriendly_ sort of way?"

"Yeah." She chuckled. "If that's a word, which I'm assuming it's not."

The women made it back to the house, enjoyed a piping hot bowl of soup with a slice of homemade soda bread that Cecelia had made, and crashed hard just before midnight.

* * *

The morning of the Spring Release party, Piper woke up before Alex, which was a first. She tried to be as quiet as possible, allowing Alex to get as much rest as she needed before the big day. As Alex laid there sleeping, Piper smiled at her long, slumbering form. She was stretched out like Superman with one arm under the pillow and her leg bent at the knee. Piper reached to tuck her hair behind her ear but pulled back quickly so as not to disturb her. Alex was beautiful— _strong_ and beautiful. Her eyes were drawn to the indent in her arm where her biceps sloped into the crook of her elbow. Again, she wanted to reach out to touch it, but thought better of it—she'd remember to trace that part of Alex's body with her tongue later that night. Her smile widened as her mind shifted from physical desire to emotional connection, and Piper thought, _she loves me_. She'd never had anyone love her the way Alex did, and the feeling was so powerful, it almost made her teary-eyed.

She pulled the covers a bit higher over Alex's arm, and then retreated to the bathroom to get dressed. Though the May afternoons were warm enough for short sleeves, the mornings were still rather chilly, and most of Piper's winter clothes were on a truck somewhere in Montana as they made their way cross country, so for the last couple of days, she'd borrowed one of Alex's flannel shirts. Truth be told, even if her clothing _had_ arrived, Piper liked the idea of wearing Alex's clothes. She smelled the blue and black flannel shirt before pulling it over one of her own gray t-shirts. She could get high from the smell of Alex.

Piper was the first person on the patio that morning, which was where she determined the Spring Release would be instead of in the wine making facility, where, according to Alex, it had always been. She had a contingency plan in case of inclement weather, but the forecast called for clear skies and temperatures hovering around 70 degrees—a gorgeous May day. She knew if the weather was nice and the setting was perfect, people would enjoy the wine even more, which meant sales should be good.

She hung ten sets of white lights on the East side of the patio before Colton arrived, and he helped her with the next ten. Together, they filled pastel vases with wildflowers, placing two on each table. Colton dangled paper lanterns from the rafters at all different lengths, while Piper set up two tasting stations on either end of the vast space. As she stood atop a ladder, hooking up a speaker in one corner, she saw Alex out of the corner of her eye.

"Hey," she greeted, shielding the sun with her hand. "Why'd you let me sleep in?"

"You needed it," Piper replied, smiling down at her girlfriend. "Can you hand me that screwdriver?"

"It's kind of hot, watching you do manual labor." Alex smirked and reached for the Phillips head. "All you need is a toolbelt."

Piper snorted. "I'll store that fantasy away for another time." She tightened a screw, and then climbed down.

"I was looking for that shirt this morning," Alex said, fingering the flannel on Piper's arm.

"Now you've found it." She strung her arms over Alex's shoulders and leaned in for a kiss. It still felt new and good and surprising to be able to kiss her like that in public.

"It looks better on you anyway." Alex smiled before deepening the kiss.

Piper pulled back, dragging her hands down Alex's arms and linking their hands together. "Ready for the big day?"

"I guess," she breathed. "I have a few things I need to do."

She turned around to look at her handiwork. "Colton and I are almost finished setting up."

"Looks great," Alex commented.

"I'll go back to the house to shower and change in about an hour." Piper turned back around, kissing her on the cheek. "Meet me there?"

She smirked as she backed away from the patio. "With a toolbelt for you."

"You two are pretty nauseating," Colton said..

Piper smiled. "I know. Isn't love great?"

He rolled his eyes as he handed her a ball of twine.

* * *

The guests would arrive just before 1 p.m. and by 11, Piper felt good about their progress. She'd hired two people as "runners" who'd agreed to do whatever she asked them to do with a moment's notice. Their first task was to replace the labels on two cases of Chardonnay so that Alex wouldn't freak out when the guests arrived. While they performed the task, Piper excused herself to get ready for the event.

She walked in the door, seeing Alex's shoes on the doormat, and figured she'd beat her home. Piper went upstairs and heard the water running.

"Mind if I join you?"

Alex turned around and smiled. "Not at all."

She quickly undressed and stood under the warm spray while Alex massaged her shoulders.

Piper grabbed the shampoo and lathered her hair. "Do you feel good about things?"

"The wine is made and the people will be here in a matter of hours. There's nothing more I can do at this point." She kissed Piper's shoulder. "The patio looks amazing, so if nothing else, at least they'll appreciate the ambiance."

Piper turned to face her. "I'd be surprised if we didn't sell at least 30 cases."

"That would be nice." Alex gave her a tentative smile.

She put her hands on Alex's chest and looked up at her. "It'll happen."

The women kissed under the hot water, and then finished getting clean before drying off. The thought of sex had entered Piper's mind, but the last thing she wanted was to be rushing around last minute, worried that the guests would begin arriving before she was there to welcome them and monitor things.

Alex had reluctantly agreed to give three winemaker talks in the barn about how the two wines they were releasing that day were made. To that end, Piper had requested that she dress up a bit more than her standard jeans and t-shirt. In fact, Piper had ordered an outfit for her from Free People and couldn't wait to see Alex in the gold, wide-legged pants and white blouse that tied at the wrists.

As Alex tied a bow on one wrist, Piper breezed in and stopped in her tracks. "Holy shit."

"What?"

Piper had been in the bathroom blow drying her hair while Alex got dressed and was _very_ pleased at what she saw when she entered the bedroom.

"You look amazing." She tossed a chunk of dark hair over Alex's shoulder, and then kissed her neck. "You smell good, too."

"I'll admit, it's more comfortable than I thought it would be." She ran a hand down the back of Piper's head.

"Good." She stepped back and admired her girlfriend again. "Thank you for putting in this much effort."

Alex batted her eyes. "Anything for you."

Piper playfully slapped her before turning to grab her light, rose-colored dress out of the closet.

"Thank you for everything you've done to make this day a success." Alex kissed her bare shoulder. "I'm sure it'll be great."

"It will be." Her fingers danced on Alex's cheek as she kissed her on the lips once, and then again. "See you down there."

* * *

She'd never told Alex how many people had RSVP'd for the Spring Release for fear of Alex feeling overwhelmed. Also, it was Piper's first foray into event planning, and she had no idea how many of the 400 guests would show up. She'd advertised it on the Harlan Hurst website and in the monthly e-newsletter, but Piper didn't stop there. She mailed flyers to every place in the country where Harlan Hurst wines were sold, asking the owners to pin the flyer to a bulletin board or place it prominently next to the register.

She'd agreed to hire the catering company that Colton had worked with in the past, but instead of serving passed hors d'oeuvres, they'd grill chicken and salmon, which Alex agreed would be perfect food pairings with the Chardonnay and dry Riesling. The event was expensive to be sure, but Piper had convinced Cecelia in order to make money, they had to spend money. If they sold 20 cases of wine, they'd cover the cost of catering; 30 cases would cover the cost of hiring extra workers for the day. (Piper was grateful that four Harlan Hurst wine club members had volunteered to pour at the event, and she vowed to beef up their volunteer staff for future events.)

As Colton helped the caterers set up the grill, Piper powered up her iPod and Diana Krall's voice wafted through the speakers.

"I think the music is a fine choice, dear." Cecelia put a hand on her arm.

"Thanks." Piper glanced towards the parking lot and saw four couples walking towards them. "Here we go."

Cecelia smiled. "It'll be fantastic."

She took a deep breath, ready to tackle whatever came her way.

* * *

During the four-hour event, Piper was pulled in every direction—from washing wine glasses to loading cases of wine into cars to charming the pants off of celebrity guests. She relieved the volunteer wine pourers when they needed a break, and she gave tours of the inn when Cecelia got bombarded. She'd heard in passing conversations that the winemaker's talk was informative, which didn't surprise her, but it relieved her tremendously to know that Alex had pulled her A-game.

Colton was a huge help, ringing up guests who bought wine and pitching in to fill platters with grilled salmon and chicken when they ran out. Piper didn't know how he'd handled release events on his own in the past—it was far too much for one person.

The last guests left just after five, and the cleaning crew swept in shortly after. Piper was so tired, she all but fell onto one of the outdoor sofas, closing her eyes and letting her head rest on the back cushion.

"You can't possibly be tied," Alex said, running her fingertips across Piper's forehead from behind.

She opened her eyes. "You better be joking."

Alex sat next to her with an audible grunt. "Fuck, that was grueling."

"I don't know if I can talk anymore." Piper closed her eyes again. "My jaw is sore."

She felt Alex take her hand. "My outfit might be nice and all, but my feet are killing me."

They sat there, heads rolled back and eyes closed, until Colton approached them with the clap of his hands.

"What the fuck?" Alex complained, jolting her head forward.

"You'll never guess how many cases we sold," he said through a wide grin.

"How many?" Piper asked.

"Sixty-two!" He yelled. "Sixty-two cases of wine!"

"No fucking way," Alex replied, looking at Piper, whose smile nearly reached her ears.

"I thought maybe 40 or 50…" she said. "Did you count the number of people who signed the guest book?"

"My grandma is doing that now." He sat across from them in a plush lawn chair. "I gotta hand it to you, Piper, you blew this thing out of the water."

"You really did." Alex strung an arm over Piper's shoulder, and she scooted into the crook of her arm.

"Thanks, but you two did a tremendous job. Everyone here did." She laced her fingers through Alex's.

Cecelia strolled onto the patio, and Piper was amazed at her stamina.

"This is one for the record books," the older woman stated. "Three hundred and seventy-four guests signed the book."

"I figured we had more than 300 people here, but I didn't think we'd approach 400," Piper commented.

Colton grabbed a bottle of dry Riesling that was left on the counter and poured four glasses, handing one to each of them. "A toast to my grandfather's legacy, my resilient grandmother, our rock star winemaker and our new public relations guru. May God continue to bless us with happiness and wine!"

They all tapped glasses, and Alex leaned over to kiss Piper's cheek before taking a sip of the wine.

"I must admit that I thought a few of your ideas were over-the-top," Cecelia began. "But you proved me wrong. Thank you for trusting your instincts."

"Thank you for trusting me in general." Piper swallowed the wine, which was her first glass of the long day.

"I think I deserve some credit for hiring her." Alex smiled.

"You certainly do," Cecelia stated. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go to bed. Colton, you're in charge of the inn."

"Got it, grandma."

The one thing Piper hadn't gotten around to yet was hiring a part-time manager for the inn. Cecelia wasn't sold on the idea, but Piper could tell that the older woman grew tired in the late afternoons, and she vowed to find someone who could pick up a few evening and weekend shifts to give both Cecelia and Colton a break.

"Ready to go home?" Alex asked, stretching.

She took Alex's hand and stood. "I'm going to take the longest bubble bath of my life."

"We'll see you guys tomorrow," Alex called as she escorted Piper across the patio.

"Thanks again, Piper," Colton said. "See ya'll tomorrow."

* * *

Although Alex didn't have a bath tub in her bedroom, there was a decent sized soaking tub in the guest room. Alex drew the water, pouring in a healthy dollop of Calgon, and Piper stepped out of her dress, carelessly tossing it across the room before getting into the tub.

"Oh my God," she moaned, skin prickling in the hot water. "This is heavenly."

Alex disappeared for a moment, and Piper sank deeper into the tub. She scooted lower until her head rested on the back lip.

Soft, instrumental music piped through the air as Alex breezed back into the bathroom completely naked and got in behind Piper. "This _is_ nice."

Piper adjusted her arms and legs so that Alex could fit in the tub and envelope her just like the bubbles.

"You blew me away today," Alex said, spooning the warm water onto Piper's shoulder. "I knew you'd do a good job, but what you accomplished was like nothing I've ever seen."

"Thank you." She looked up at her. "It was stressful, but that was only my first go-round. It'll get easier, I hope, from here on out."

Alex lowered her neck and kissed her gently. "Did you at least have a little fun?"

"Yeah, I did." She rubbed Alex's arms. "There were a couple of moments when I could stand back and observe everything around me. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves, and the wine flew off the shelves."

She wrapped her legs around Piper's waist. "How many bottles did we pour?"

"I counted 24 empties, but Colton was going to confirm numbers later."

Alex kissed a trail over her shoulder and up her neck as her hand reached between Piper's legs.

She opened her legs as far as she could as Alex toyed with her pussy. "Mmm, that feels good."

She inserted a finger into Piper's opening. "Water isn't the best lubricant. Do you want to soak a little longer or get out so I can more properly finger you?"

"When you put it that way," Piper moaned. "I could be persuaded to get out."

They stood one at a time, each carefully stepping out of the tub and wasting no time rubbing each other's wet bodies and kissing. Alex walked backwards, taking Piper with her, until they reached the guest bed after maneuvering around a few boxes. Not bothering to dry off or unmake the bed, they landed hard on the mattress, and Alex trailed kisses down her abdomen to her center. Although Piper was exhausted, she wasn't too tired for sex. Alex slowly, gently licked her pussy until Piper felt a familiar rumble in her stomach.

"I…right there…Alex, I'm…I'm… _ohgod_!" She grabbed Alex's head, pulling it closer to her center as she rode out an impressive orgasm.

Alex licked her clean, and then made her way back up Piper's body. "I love watching you like that."

She kissed Alex on the mouth. "Can I do you?"

"You don't have to ask," Alex chuckled.

Piper shimmied down her body, fingers landing inside her before her tongue joined the action. She spread Alex's legs, and then hooked them over her shoulders. Although her muscles were sore and the weight of Alex's legs was a little uncomfortable, she relished in the taste and the feel of her girlfriend's pussy. Piper inserted a third finger, twisting her hand until she could reach far enough inside to find her G-spot, tongue never leaving her clit. She could feel Alex's walls tighten and knew she was on the edge. Piper sucked her clit hard, and then flicked it with the tip of her tongue, which sent Alex into a loud, powerful orgasm.

When she was finished, Piper wiped her fingers on the bed sheets, then crawled up to lie next to Alex. "Let's just sleep here."

"Mmm," Alex breathed. "Sounds good to me."

And they did just that, falling asleep in a naked heap on the guest bed with a bathtub still full of water and faded bubbles.

* * *

Harlan had never been big on release parties at the vineyard. In fact, it took Felix, Alex and Cecelia two years to convince him to throw the first one. Harlan lived to see only four release parties, and they broke even or made a miniscule profit at each one. To him, the event was effective "just to get the name out there" and turning a profit was insignificant. What would Harlan Hurst think if he knew that his winery made $10,000 at a Spring Release party that year?

Cecelia gave full reign to Alex and Piper to determine where the profit would go. Piper wanted to invest at least half of the proceeds, and Alex wanted new barrels. At $350 per barrel, she was able to buy 15 new Hungarian oak barrels, and Piper invested the rest.

It didn't take much convincing for Cecelia and Alex to agree to host another release party in the fall when they'd bottle the red wines. Piper determined that the best time to host the Fall Release would be either the weekend before or after Crush. The small town would be buzzing at that time of year anyway, so why not capitalize on it? The money they would make from the event would go towards a new closed-top fermenter, which Alex claimed was long overdue.

* * *

The summer months at Harlan Hurst were busier than Piper thought they'd be. She was still learning the ropes of managing essentially two businesses with the inn and the vineyard, and Alex was busy blending wine and tending to the vines. She had to go away to a four-day Washington Winemakers conference in Spokane in late June, but Piper chose to stay at the estate to welcome Layla.

Piper had hoped that Polly would make her way out there that summer, but married life kept her busy, and she didn't want to tag along on Layla's vacation to spend time with Colton. She promised Piper that she'd visit her before the end of that year.

During Alex's absence, Piper felt more like the house was becoming _theirs_. She'd struggled with calling it her house since moving in, because everything inside belonged to Alex. As strange as it seemed, spending four days alone in the house allowed Piper to bond with it, and by the end of her solo time, she felt a small sense of kinship with the house.

As much as she appreciated her alone time, when Alex returned, Piper showered her with affection, telling her she was never allowed to leave again. If it was possible, sex was even better after Alex's trip, so Piper agreed that she could go away once a year for the sake of having the best 'welcome home sex' ever.

The long summer days meant grilling on the deck, star gazing in the middle of the vineyard, and the occasional skinny dip in a nearby pond. By mid-August, they'd settled into a routine, having lunch together at home and meeting up for dinner before sunset.

One afternoon, Piper went home after a meeting with Cecelia to make club sandwiches and wait for Alex to join her. She walked inside only to find a note on the kitchen counter: _Meet me by the hammock. Already packed lunch_. Piper tucked the note into her shorts pocket, and then left the house in search of Alex.

The hammock was in an inconspicuous area behind the wine making barn, and Piper had only been there the one time when she'd just met Alex. As she approached the tree-lined area, a smile crept on her face with the memory from nearly a year ago.

"What made you decide to meet here?" she asked as she watched Alex rock in the hammock.

She turned her head. "Remember this place?"

"Of course, I do." She smiled. "You let me wear your mom's hat while I took a nap here."

Alex tossed the old hat to her, and Piper caught it and put it on.

"I doubt I look as good in it as you do," Piper commented.

"You look hot." Alex stood. "Then again, you look hot in whatever you're wearing."

She accepted a kiss. "What did you pack?"

"A cheese plate and some salami." She grabbed the picnic basket. "Hungry?"

She nodded and followed her. "Where are we going?"

"To the lone apple tree."

"Where we had our first meal together?" Piper was pleased but confused as to why Alex picked that day to relive a memory.

"Yeah."

They made their way to the tree, and she helped Alex spread the blanket like she'd done in October.

"Am I missing an anniversary or something?" Piper enquired.

"I don't think so." Alex pulled out two wine glasses. "I just thought it would be nice to eat out here again." She handed Piper a roll of crackers while she worked on a bottle of wine. "This isn't the same wine we drank back then. It's a Rosé from Provence."

She opened the crackers and set them on a cheese plate. "Where'd you get it?"

"From the conference. They were giving away all kinds of wine." She poured two glasses of the light pink liquid.

She swirled it in the glass. "You didn't tell me they gave you wine."

"I was so excited to see you that I forgot to mention it." Alex smiled. "It's not like I was hiding it from you."

Something was amiss—what was Alex hiding?

"Ok." Piper took a sip. "It's good—dry and a little effervescent."

"I know you like Rosé, and I thought this one would pair nicely with the Brie." She opened the round, wooden container to reveal the cheese.

"I like French wines in general," Piper said around a bite. "I always thought I was more of an Italian wine drinker, but the more I get to know about French varietals, the more I appreciate them."

"I'd drink French over Italian any day." Alex opened a can of almonds. "Would you grab the Port Salut in there?"

Piper reached into the picnic basket and pulled out the second cheese. It was wrapped in an odd paper. "What's this?"

She remained silent as Piper unwrapped the cheese.

"French Wine: An Insider's View," Piper read, and then looked up at Alex. She glanced back down at the paper and continued reading. "Offering exclusive luxury wine tours in France, our tours are designed to help wine lovers discover the beauty of French wine and culture…" Piper looked back up at her. "Alex, what is this?"

"Do you want to go to France with me?" she asked through an almost shy laugh.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

Piper lurched forward, hugging Alex so tightly that she almost toppled over.

"That's not even the best part," Alex said, gently pushing her away.

"How could _anything_ be better than this?" She looked at the paper again, and when she returned her gaze to Alex, she was holding a little box.

Piper's eyebrows shot up and her hand covered her heart.

Alex smiled. "Instead of calling it a vacation, calling it our honeymoon."

Her mouth went dry and her pulse quickened. "Are you…"

"Am I proposing?" Alex laughed. "Yeah, if you'd let me get to it."

Piper's eyes welled up with tears.

"I think by now you know how much I love you," Alex began. "And how much I trust you. This wasn't a difficult decision for me—I knew I wanted to spend my life with you when I held your hair back as you puked in the Subway station." She chuckled. "The hardest part was finding time to find the right ring." Alex scooted closer, taking one of Piper's hands in her lap. "So, Piper Elizabeth Chapman, will you marry me?"

Piper covered her mouth with her free hand as tears streamed down her face. "Yes!"

This time when Piper lurched forward, she _did_ knock Alex over. They kissed on the blanket for a few seconds before Piper sat back up and pulled Alex with her.

"Don't you want to see the ring?" Alex opened the tiny box to reveal a gold and pewter rough diamond ring. "I found it in Spokane of all places." She took it out of the box and presented it to Piper.

"It's gorgeous." She examined it closely: the band was two vines that came together to cradle the diamond.

Alex slid it onto her finger. "It's called _Through the Vines_."

Piper watched the diamond sparkle on her finger, and then leaned forward to chastely kiss Alex on the lips. "I love you so much, and I can't wait to marry you."

"And go to France?" She smiled.

"That, too." Piper returned the smile and kissed her fiancé for all she was worth.

THE END

* * *

Author's Note: Thank you so much for reading this story! I had fun writing it even though it was incomplete before I began posting. If you didn't know much about wine production before reading this story, hopefully this gave you some insight into the fascinating process. Thanks one and all for the kind reviews.


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